If things go as car companies and some environmental advocates envision, filling up the car with gas won’t be something most Americans do anymore in about 20 years. The task when the car runs low on fuel will be to charge its battery. Ameren Illinois Vice President of Policy and Energy Supply Jim Blessing says there’ll need to be more electric charging stations. He says they don’t necessarily need to be as prevalent as gas stations are now, but travelers should have charging corridors they know they can use.
“The car companies have already announced that they are moving to electric vehicles. Many are saying that’s all they will be producing by 2030 and what we recognize is that the infrastructure in downstate Illinois is not there. For the most part, if you are just a daily driver, driving around locally, you are going to take the car out, you’re going to drive around town, you are going to come home and recharge it and be ready to go the next day. The charging corridor concept is really for enabling those vehicles to also be used for longer trips, making sure that every 50 to 60 miles as you are driving on one of these major roads, there is a spot you can stop and recharge your vehicle in a relatively short period of time so that you can feel comfortable getting out in your vehicle and taking longer trips.”
Blessing says downstate Illinois needs a lot of help developing places where people can quickly charge electric vehicles on their way across the state. Ameren Illinois is supporting a plan the Illinois House Public Utilities Committee approved this week and is sending to the full House.
***Report Courtesy of farmweeknow.com***
