Electric Car Driver Offers Solution For Better Etiquette At Bay Area Charging Stations
MOUNTAIN VIEW (KPIX 5) – As the number of electric cars on the road is growing every day, it's getting harder and harder to find a place to plug them in. A Google employee is hoping his idea will keep the peace.
A small lot in Mountain View is said to be the third busiest Tesla charging station in the world. It's an example of how of how fast the cars are outpacing the chargers.
"We see the station is full here and Tesla is selling more cars, so I wonder what it's gonna look like in the future," said Tesla owner Karl Rupilius.
Regardless of brand, the market for electric vehicles is heating up and so is the competition for time on a charger. There are growing complaints of drivers unplugging someone else's car to charge their own.
Clearly, there is a growing need for some kind of order in all of this. And that's where Jack Brown comes in.
Brown, who works at Google, has created what he calls the "EV Etiquette Survival Pack." For $14.99, drivers get a placard to hang on their charger that indicates when charging will be finished.
It also includes courtesy notices to discourage EV drivers from staying too long, or, God forbid, a gas guzzler from parking in a charging space.
"Those that are experienced and have gone through the anxiety have learned to be cooperative. It's the people that are just getting into the cars that don't really understand the etiquette," Brown told KPIX 5.
The etiquette at public stations really boils down to three golden rules: don't park in a charging station if not charging, once you're done, move your car out and limit your charge to what you really need.
But there's no guarantee that will be well-received. It's not far-fetched to think someone who buys a $100,000 car and gets their own lane to drive in, might end up feeling a bit, well, entitled.
"When I first got the car, I kinda had that feeling, and then realized, you know what? Everyone's just trying to get off gas," Brown recalled. "Just change your mindset and be more cooperative and I think that really helps out in the long run."