As the world moves away from internal combustion engines (ICE) and toward an electric future, there are going to be many changes. One fascinating difference will be the way in which we approach refilling our fuel tanks.
We are all inured to the fact that if we own an ICE car we have to visit a gas station to fuel up. But when you step back from the banality of pumping gas, you realize they aren’t a perfect solution. If you had the choice, wouldn’t it be much better and easier to fuel up where you live and/or work, or where you do errands? Wouldn’t it be great not to have to make an extra stop in your busy everyday life, while also not having to deal with the smell and the mess of gas stations?
And therein lies a big change with electrification. First and foremost, many people will plug in where they live. You’ll top off your ‘tank’ every night and will have very little need to ever plug in anywhere else. Outside of the home, you will see chargers pop up in many atypical places such as office buildings, malls, libraries, town centers, etc… You’ll see them in apartment buildings and parking garages and rest stops. Installing chargers will be seen as a necessary and attractive amenity for commercial and municipal real estate.
If you are going on a long trip, you’ll map out where the chargers are and plan your drive accordingly. There’s a certain carefree-ness we’ll be surrendering since we are used to driving and being able to find a gas station virtually anywhere (unless you live in a city of course, where gas stations have become extinct). The first time you can’t find an open charger with your battery levels running low will be a learning experience laden with a few expletives. But the tradeoff will be that you’ll plug in most overnights and leave with a full ‘tank’ every morning, thus obviating the need for all of those everyday gas station visits. In the grand scheme of things, that’s a win for progress.