Hawaii becomes a "Better Place"
It's hard to image a more beautiful place than Hawaii. But Shai Agassi and Linda Lingle want to make it a "Better Place." The volcanic archipelago is one of the most remote populated places on the planet, sitting out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. That means that almost anything except the fruit that's grown there and the fish caught in the sea is much more expensive than anywhere else in the US because of the transportation costs. The tropical environment is also extremely sensitive to disruptions like pollution, be it breathable or noise.In an effort to stem those problems, governor Linda Lingle has signed up Agassi and his Better Place start up (they've been discussing the option since May, at least). Better Place will start implementing a network of 50-100,000 public charging stations around the islands between now and 2012. The charging stations would get power mostly from renewable energy sources in the island chain. Hawaii is actually one of the places where EVs make the most sense. Since even the Big Island is not that huge and places like Oahu and Kauai are relatively small, long road trips are not really much of an issue. Even a 100-mile EV wouldn't leave anyone stranded. The tropical climate stays pretty consistent year-round so that EVs won't have to deal very cold or hot temperatures either.
From the ABG Archives: The First Electric Car in Hawaii.
[Source: Honolulu Advertiser]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Tom 12:48PM (12/03/2008)
Actually, the Big Island really is that big and a 100 mile range car would be challenged since the Big Island is really quite rural. If you never left the Hilo side or never left the Kona side it might work as a commute car but that's about it.
Maui is a little different and a 120 mile range EV would work here, especially since we don't have much of a public transportation system.
Oahu, however, does have a pretty good public transportation system that is only going to get better with the addition of a rail system just approved by voters.
But then, in Hawaii, everything is decided by Oahu for the perceived political or economic benefit of Oahu (small island, big city, about 3/4 of the state's population) with the rest of us out in the dark.
This smells more like a political play by Lingle than a serious attempt to encourage EV growth.
I'd love to see some serious changes in state regulations and tax structure to truly encourage EVs and discourage vast numbers of ICE vehicles, which is something neither Lingle nor the local island mayors seem willing to do.
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James 5:00PM (12/03/2008)
Congratulations Better Place once again for leading the way. Jeff Wilson has a newly released book out called The Manhattan Project of 2009 Energy Independence NOW. This is one of the plans in his book. I found it facinating but thought it a bit futuristic. It was beyond thrilling to see this actually starting to take place in our society.
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