Our first weekend with the Leaf and we thought we'd try a Sunday drive. We figure anywhere in a 50 mile radius of Worcester is safe in winter since we dont want to skimp on heat or defrost, and while we could probably get back on one charge, for now we'll pick destinations we can charge at for ease of mind.
So we chose to do a 50 mile ride to Northampton to do some Christmas shopping, as there are several charging stations in the center of Northampton. We could have traveled to Boston instead, also 50 miles from Worcester, but prefer spending our money in Northampton, it's so cool there!
But when we arrived at the E. J. Gare garage on Hampton St., listed in Recargo only, we discovered that the two charging stations were blocked in by gas powered cars and there was no way we could charge. We we're a little worried, would we get home? We had used over half of our bars. The attendant on duty told us they were new and no one knew what to do with those spots. He apologized, but said there was nothing he could do. He told us that even a parking lease holder, who owns a Chevy Volt has trouble getting access to those spots because no one stops gas cars from blocking them.
He told us about the charging stations on Crafts Ave. (only listed in Plugshare) and when we went there they were also blocked by gas cars. Luckily, people were in one of them and kindly let us park to charge. We were very relieved and went off to leave lots of money with stores and restaurants. Now these spots are normally 15 min parking, strictly enforced, the sign says, unless you're charging your car. We think this is fair as EV's wont always be there to charge, so the spaces wont be wasted in a town that has tight parking to begin with. But we felt plain lucky to be assured we could still get home. Charging infrastructure in MA needs a lot more development.
So, we sent an email to the mayor and parking administrator of Northampton to ask what they might do to improve the situation in the Gare garage? We suggested some ideas, but will be thrilled with whatever resolution they can come up with that will be effective. For example:
* More visible painting and signage to differentiate these two spots in the garage.
* Making these spots 15 min parking unless charging, just like the Crafts spots, also strictly enforced.
* Plain old enforcement, if ticketing and/or towing non-chargers is viable under Northampton regulations.
* Use of cones and/or attendant oversight to prevent blocking, although this may not work if the attendant is not always available.
* Applying warning stickers to the blocking cars to warn them of future enforcement while asking them to avoid these spots in future. (Unless you go with the 15 min parking option.)
We realize that this is all new and uncharted territory, but we hope Northampton comes up with a workable plan. Electric only cars are new and rare now, but will only grow in the future. We'll never go back to using only a gas car, and avoid using it if we can. If something major happens in the Middle East and gas were ever rationed or cost over $10/gal. the demand for EV's could explode quickly. (Making your used Leaf pretty valuable.) It would be great if Northampton had superior charging station policies that would attract more people to town, no matter what happens. We certainly would like to return without being anxious about our return home. Destination charging is such a worthwhile promotional tool. More shopping areas should install stations, it'ssuch a natural fit promotionally.
Nissan would do well to give every dealer a QC station, both for promotion, and to create a network we could hop along to go almost anywhere, there are so many Nissan dealers around here.
So in four hours of shopping and eating we got another full charge that we had no problem using most of, luxuriating in heat all the way home. Route 9 is a fun ride in this car.
While we were disconnecting the charger, a family walked by and the young boy pointed and said, "Look that car's charging! That's so cool! It's a hybrid!" Close enough for us.
Pity all the charge station locator apps cant get together and share locations, they can still differentiate on style, like the Carwings clones. They could at least copy each other's locations.
We actually like the so called "Guess O'Meter". We're not geeky enough to need ultimate range precision, and it's calculations are a close enough estimate for us. We represent the future of just every day drivers who just want to drive the thing like it was any other car.
But a 300 mile range would be nice.
