New Chargers Added - Mar. 12th - Mar. 13th, 2013 + Interesting News Bits

Over the last 24 hours - there have been 23 New Public Chargers added to the PlugShare network, plus 15 New Photos, and 4 New home stations being shared. 

Plugshare is now tracking 15,816 Total Stations! (Soon to hit 16,000 Stations Tracked!)

The additions tracked are: 

• New Public Chargers Added = 23
• New Restricted Stations added = 1
• New Photos Added = 15
• New Home Stations Shared = 4

58 People Checked into Public EV Chargers today, which means that while it was double or triple the last few days, most people are still charging up at home, and just 58 needed a little extra or did not have a home charger! Or they were checking out charging stations before they needed them - to get a feel for the locations! Maybe - with warmer weather - and new EV Buyers - comes more public charging, too! 

The last person counted today - was 'Chris Checked in at Mayer Electric Supply, Marietta, CA'

Special thanks to Brian (Seattle, WA), Dana (Cheshire, CT), David (Mountainville, NY),  and Seth (Cedar Falls, IA), for sharing their Home stations access with us today!

New Public Stations today, by Name & Location (where possible):

1. Palm Springs Public Library, Palm Springs, CA
2. Hubbell Incorporated, Shelton, CT
3. Thrifty Foods, Central Saanich, BC
4. Millwoods Nissan, Edmonton, AB
5. Providence - Colby Campus, Everett, WA
6. 2404 Heritage Court SW., Olympia, AC
7. Walmart, Kailua-Kona, HI
8. Creek Resort, Orlando Resort, FL
9. City Hall, Huntington Beach, CA
10. Elmhurst, Haward, CA
11. Parking Garage, Brooklyn, NY
12. Zenk Lot, Novato, CA
13. Gymnastic Center, Novato, CA
14. CCAH Salinis, CA
15. City Council Chambers, Novato, CA
16. Madeira, Mountain View, CA
17. AutoBeYours.com, Scottsburg, IN
18. PMC Enterprises, Forsyth, GA
19. Kingman KOA, Kingman, AZ
20. Willimas Grand Canyon KOA, Williams, AZ
21. Heathman Hotel, Portland, OR
22. Hyatt Regency, Indian Wells, CA Resort & Spa
23. Hotel La Jolla, CA

New Restricted Stations today, by Name & Location (where possible):

1. Roush, Henderson, CO

Interesting News Bits:

Solar Companies See Electric Vehicles as a Growth Engine.

SolarCity (NASDAQ: SCTY  ) and Tesla Motors (NASDAQ: TSLA  ) don't seem like a natural fit initially, but a growing number of partnerships between the solar company and electric vehicle maker may be a sign of what's to come in these two industries. SunPower (NASDAQ: SPWR  ) already has deals with Nissan and Ford (NYSE: F  ) , and solar companies are viewing electric vehicles as a ... (More)

Switching to LEDs could help eliminate food waste.

Usually, we’d tell you that the big impact here would be the energy saved. And that does happen. But also, by using LEDs, supermarkets can keep food fresh for longer.

It makes sense when you think about it: The light from a traditional incandescent bulb comes from a piece of metal, heated to such a high temperature that it glows. A byproduct of this process is, not surprisingly, heat. And when you put food near heat, ...(More).

South Carolina Reaches Top Ten in Electric Vehicle Readiness Metrics.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy’s alternative fuel locator, South Carolina ranks eighth in public charging station locations per capita. South Carolina has 106 locations for its 4.6 million residents. This is close behind California, which places sixth and ahead of Texas, which places fifteenth. Oregon is on top of the list with 258 public locations ...(More).

Menu labeling law not ready; Volt and Prius outsell Nissan’s Leaf.

General Motors Co.’s Chevrolet Volt and Toyota Motor Corp.’s plug-in Prius outsold Nissan Motor Co.’s Leaf globally for the first time, Bloomberg New Energy Finance said. Deliveries of the Volt more than tripled to...(More).

Musk: Stretching US Wait Times To Make 7,000 Model S Deliveries For Europe in 2013, Plus 3-Phase And CHAdeMO Info.

Give GM CEO Dan Akerson, or Akio Toyoda from Toyota a microphone, and prepare for a snooze-fest that you will most likely come away from with no more knowledge than what you started out with.  But give the mic to rockstar CEOs like Carlos Ghosn from Nissan, or Elon Musk from Tesla…and you are always going to...(More).

And a Special clip, In recognition of the New Pope, Pope Francis 1, (Mario Bergoglio of Argentina), and the Outgoing Benedict XVI, pope emeritus - The Electric Popemobile:

Holy Roller: Renault donates all-electric Popemobile to His Holiness.

Popes know how to travel in style, as the long list of iconic Popemobiles can attest to. In recent years, His Holiness Benedict XVI – aka the "Green Pope" – has been trying to clean up those bubbly vehicles with alternative powertrains. He wanted a plug-in hybrid from Mercedes-Benz or a solar-powered...(More).

New Chargers Added - Mar. 11th, - Mar. 12th, 2013 + News

Looks like it has been a bit of a quiet Tuesday, as well - with a lot less development than recent days, but still a fair amount of activity among EV users, as they go about their business, accessing Public Charging Stations along the way.

Over the last 24 hours - there have been 3 New Public Chargers added to the PlugShare network, plus 18 New Photos, and 2 New home stations being shared. 

Plugshare is now tracking 15,770 Total Stations!

The additions tracked are: 

• New Public Chargers Added = 3
• New Photos Added = 18
• New Home Stations Shared = 2

65 People Checked into Public EV Chargers today, which means that while it was double or triple the last few days, most people are still charging up at home, and just 65 needed a little extra or did not have a home charger! Or they were checking out charging stations before they needed them - to get a feel for the locations! Maybe - with warmer weather - and new EV Buyers - comes more public charging, too!

Special thanks to Robert (Houma, LA), and Doug (Half Moon Bay, CA)  for sharing their Home stations access with us today!

New Public Stations today, by Name & Location (where possible):

1. El Rancho Market, Solvang, CA 
2. Pacific Coast Plaza, Pizmo Beach, CA
3. Milroy Construction, Mountain View, CA

Among this activity - things are happening in many other places, some of them are listed in my first additional page here - Something for my Expanding Reach and Readership!

Also - Toyota Now Offering HUGE Prius PHEV Discounts, and a comparison story:

Chevy Volt Versus Prius Plug-In Versus Ford CMAX Energi. (Of Course - your needs may be different - and Max. All Electric Range (AER) - may be different than for others!)

For something different - see:
Solar Companies See Electric Vehicles as a Growth Engine.

New Chargers Added - Mar. 6th, - Mar. 7th, 2013

Over the last 24 hours - there have been 17 New Public Chargers added to the PlugShare network, 17 New Photos, and 7 New home stations being shared. 

Connecticut was the State with the  largest number of additional chargers added today, with 3 new charging points defined there in just one day! (Utah Came Second with 2 New Chargers Listed!)

Plugshare is now tracking 15,631 Total Stations!

The additions tracked are: 

• New Public Chargers Added = 17
• New Restricted Stations added = 1 @ Central Co-Op, 1600 E Madison St, Seattle, WA
• New Photos Added = 17
• New Home Stations Shared = 7

42  People Checked into Public EV Chargers today, which means most people are still charging up at home, and just 42 needed a little extra or did not have a home charger! (Or they were checking out charging stations before they needed them - to get a feel for the locations!) 

Special thanks to Kathy, Karen, Jay, Shawn, Anthony, Tom, & Adam - for sharing their Home stations access with us today!

New Public Stations today, by Name & Location (where possible):

1. Richmond Centre Sears Parking Lot, Richmond, BC
2. Fort Melon Park, Sanford, FL
3. Finch CHEV, London, ON
4. Hotel Indigo, Athens, GA
5. General Electric, Plainville, CT
6. Safeway Parking Lot, (No Address!!)
7. UPMC Presbyterian Garage, Pittsburgh, PA
8. Sunrise Chevrolet, Glendale Heights, IL
9. Zion River Resort, RV Park, Virgin, UT
10. Zion West RV Park, Leeds, UT
11. Palm Creek at Warms Springs RV Park, Moab, NV
12. Walgreen's, Little Elm, TX
13. Fort Detrick, Frederick, MD
14. Kirby Parks, Edwardsville, PA
15. Tim Horton's Restaurant 250, Oakville, ON
16. St. Francis Hospital, Hartford, CT
17. City Place Parking Garage, Hartford, CT

A Special Note To the new Electric Vehicle Dealers, Selling Chevy Volts, Nissan LEAF's, Mitsubishi iMiEV's, Mercedes Smart ED's, and Toyota Prius PHV's, and any other EV Dealers:

One Continuing Issue is the concept that a number of the Auto Dealers have - that their EVSE (EVCharger) Should be Only for Their Own Brand of Vehicle (NISSAN LEAF's only charging at a Nissan Dealerships, Chevy Volts Only charging at Chevy Dealerships, etc.)

What such dealers do not seem to understand - is their own balance sheets can be greatly affected by this - because besides being over protective, it is not very courteous, offers no Goodwill Investment in the community, and creates opportunity for bad blood. Particularly - when a Dealer let's you start to charge your nearly empty Electric Vehicle - then comes and unplugs you a few minutes later because your are not driving 'Their Brand' - which has happened now! (See the Activity stream on the PlugShare apps for today!)

Also - at the cost of charging up a iMiEV, or Nissan LEAF - being about 40 Cents worth of Electricity per hour - it takes a couple hours for them to consume 1 cup of coffee's worth of Electricity - at worst! 

That Same two hours of charging might be all they need to get home in a bit of a timely manner, and they will definitely thank you for letting them charge - and say good things about you doing so (even if you don't hear them directly)! 

On the other hand - you can imagine the comments they will share when you treat them  like beggars and bums, just because when coming into your dealership with a different branded EV for a charge - you think it won't 'Look Good' for an other brand to be plugged in at your shop or showroom location's EV Charger!

If you refuse to work in the EV Community as a member of the EV Community, and support other members of the EV Community - it would be best to simply not be a part of it.

An Even Worse style of thinking I have come across - is not just 'My Brand Only' - but - 'My Stores Customers Only!' that means - if you bought the same brand elsewhere - you STILL won't be allowed to charge up your Plug-in Vehicle at their store - since you did not buy it there! Rest Assured - that is an extreme case of cutting your nose off to spite your face, no matter how much money you think you are saving - it will greatly affect your bottom line far beyond what you may ever learn - only because you put that kind of thinking out there!

The EV Community - and EV Drivers are not 'Cheap' - considering the much more expensive Vehicles they have bought - compared to a similar sized Gasoline Vehicle, so why treat them like they are Cheap Beggars? Instead - treat them as leads to your next customer - or clients for your brand - when you treat them with kindness, support them, and work to help them - they will do what you least expect - Remember you as a positive influence in their life - and talk about it in the same fashion! They might even refer a friend to your branded store to check out your products, EV's or other!

I might be wrong in this - but I think of it like the days of a Store Owner - who can't help you - referring you to his competition to get what you need, because - he truly wants to help you - not just make a sale!

What do you think? Add your comments below and tell me your thoughts about this! EV Drivers, and EV Dealers (Plug-in Hybrids [And EREV's] too!).

New Chargers Added - Feb. 27th - 28th, 2013 Plus More News!

Again, 59  People Checked into Public EV Chargers today, which means most people are still charging up at home, and just 59 needed a little extra or did not have a home charger!

Over the last 24 hours - there have been new Public Chargers added to the PlugShare network, New Photos, and New home stations being shared. 

The additions tracked are: 

• New Public Chargers Added =  8
• New Photos Added = 10
• New Home Stations Shared = 2

Special thanks to Mike & Chuck  for sharing their Home stations access with us today!

In other plug-in EV News, California approves Amp electric truck sales, and a miss-titled story - Trans-Canada Electric Expands EV Charging Station Network (should say - Sun Country Highway Expands Trans Canada EV Charging Network).

For Some interesting Reading and a chance to test your mat skills - see:

Tesla Test-Drive Controversy Misses the Big Picture, on Forbes.com

Challenges mentioned in this story - take us into the next skirmish: J1772 Combo Plug vs. CHAdeMo, which leads us to this story - 
ABB unveils fast charging stations supporting SAE DC Fast Charging, Combined Charging System.

Further Dual Format Charger Stories:

ABB to bring Terra 51 electric car fast charging station to US market and support SAE Fast Charging

and - 

Schneider Electric unveils electric car DC Fast Charger with upgradeability beyond CHADEMO.

If you are looking to test drive Electric Vehicle Beyond a Dealers spec loop - consider car sharing companies - Like - Zipcar for the new Honda Fit EV:

Zipcar plugs Honda Fit EVs into Portland fleet.

In Ontario - particularly the Toronto/GTA - consider AutoShare for their existing fleet of 4 Plug-in Vehicles: Battery Electric Vehicles include the Nissan Leaf,and the  Mitsubishi i-MiEV; Range Extended Electric Vehicle - Chevy Volt, and the Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid.