TRENTON — Automakers are expecting a surge in electric car sales during the next two years, but for many would-be drivers one big question remains: What happens if the battery dies on the road? Electric vehicles get only so much mileage out of a full battery charge, and motorists can’t depend on the same outlets that power their cell...
A plug-in electric truck at Picatinny Arsenal, in Morris County.TRENTON — Automakers are expecting a surge in electric car sales during the next two years, but for many would-be drivers one big question remains: What happens if the battery dies on the road?
Electric vehicles get only so much mileage out of a full battery charge, and motorists can’t depend on the same outlets that power their cell phones or laptops. All that raises the question of public charging stations, which New Jersey legislators have been considering as a new lineup of hybrids and all-electric models heads to dealerships.
"The biggest issue with electric vehicles is clearly the range-anxiety problem," said Jesse Toprak, an auto industry analyst at TrueCar.com. "Either the battery range needs to get longer, or you need to have a good network of charging stations that is practical and easily accessible."
One bill to set up charging stations along New Jersey’s toll highways cleared a Senate committee 3-2 Monday.
Legislators and environmentalists said public charging stations are key to cutting pollution, reducing U.S. foreign-oil dependency, and stimulating electric car sales. The stations would be built on parking lots in all but one of the service areas on the New Jersey Turnpike, the Garden State Parkway and the Atlantic City Expressway.
"There are very large numbers (of cars) being produced obviously with the expectation that they’re going to be bought, so we need to be prepared," said Sen. Linda Greenstein (D-Middlesex), the bill sponsor.
Transit officials estimated each station would cost more than $5,000 to build, and while they supported the idea behind the bill, they raised concerns about investing up-front and recovering costs from drivers, as the bill currently stipulates.
Greenstein told the Environment and Energy Committee she is looking for other ways to fund the project, and legislators urged her to seek federal funds or private investment. She hopes to bring the finished bill (S2603) to the Senate floor within months.
Assembly Majority Leader Joseph Cryan (D-Union), who is sponsoring the bill in his chamber, said an amendment currently in the works would lower the required number of charging stations per service area, which would drive costs down. He also said the price per station comes down to $1,250 with a federal tax credit.
"After tax credits, it’s extremely manageable," he said.
Another bill pending in the Assembly (A3647) would require any new shopping centers to provide the same kind of charging stations in their parking lots. Under that bill, the Board of Public Utilities would set pricing standards for the shopping centers.
At the Senate committee hearing, environmentalists praised Greenstein’s bill and encouraged transit authorities to pay for it. Jeff Tittel of the Sierra Club said at least 10 all-electric and 10 hybrid models are coming out in the next two years.
"The Turnpike Authority is widening roads, they have plenty of money for that, but they should have some money for green technology as well," he said. "The cars are coming. We need to get that infrastructure moving."