As millions head out for holiday happenings, even the most well-prepared electric vehicle (EV) operators could find themselves snagged, ensnaring other road warriors in Christmas chaos.
Pushing the green agenda, President Joe Biden and others of the “build back better” fandom have readily latched onto opportunities to force the transition from reliable gas-powered vehicles to EVs ahead of establishing an infrastructure to support them.
Now with the American Automobile Association predicting the second-busiest Christmas travel period since 2000, warning bells are ringing for EV owners and potential renters about what woes they might run into that traditional drivers won’t face.
According to AAA, more than 115 million Americans are expected to be traveling, and roughly 104 million will be on the road between Dec. 23 and Jan. 1 driving to destinations at least 50 miles away from their homes.
An EV driver herself, Axios reporter Joann Muller spoke to the challenges of “Getting over the river and through the woods” that could be faced, in particular when traveling to colder climes.
“EV road trips require advance planning — especially in colder weather, which can significantly diminish battery range,” she remarked. “My husband and I learned this firsthand last February as the temperatures dipped on a road trip back home to Michigan from Florida…We were overconfident in our car’s driving range, and had to practically limp to a charging station as the battery warnings flashed ever-more urgent messages.”
She also noted that in addition to planning out stops for charging, the extensive time to juice up needed to be factored in or drivers ran the risk of missing the events they were headed to. “I missed half of my niece’s baby shower because I had to stop and recharge the EV I was test-driving.”
Her’s was hardly a unique experience as MotorTrend’s Christian Seabaugh recounted his own harrowing adventure after a Labor Day family emergency requiring them to travel hundreds of miles, in what should have taken hours, became an overnight ordeal.
“We pulled off I-5 with 37 miles of ranges and a 14 percent charge,” the writer indicated, having opted to go further to charge at what were considered more reliable stations, “navigated through the 98 Tesla Supercharger stalls, dodged the holiday crowds stopping for dinner, and found the distinctive green glow of Harris Ranch’s six Electrify America towers.”
“Two were occupied by charging vehicles, one was completely offline with its screen dark, and one showed a ‘Charger Unavailable!’ message, but the final two appeared to be online,” he detailed before explaining there was no such luck and the customer service representative was unable to successfully restart them. After it was recommended he turn back to a station already passed, he went across the freeway to an alternative charging station to no avail.
Resorting to waiting in line for a functioning charger tacked two hours of waiting before an hour of charging only brought the car to a 64 percent charge. Ultimately, with an arrival time having slipped from midnight to somewhere past 3 a.m., the decision was made to book a hotel with a charger for an overnight stay.
Another report from Business Insider detailed how brutal efforts to increase an EV’s range could be on the driver. “A combustion-engine car creates heat as a byproduct, so cranking up the radiator is no big deal. But electric cars use energy from their batteries to make heat, leaving drivers choosing between maximum range and maximum comfort.”
“I hit the road back to New York on a chilly morning with 176 miles of range. When I went to turn on the heat, the indicated range plummeted to 125 miles. The options became: Stay toasty and charge twice, or endure the cold and stick with the planned one-stop strategy,” he said before stating, “I bundled up and relied mostly on the seat and steering-wheel warmers (which are more efficient than the regular heater) to make things almost bearable. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t curse these silly electric cars under my breath once or twice.”
With the risk of inexperienced operators getting stranded on the road, at their destinations due to batteries getting sapped sitting in the cold, and other problems, the Axios also reminded that rental companies expected cars returned charged just like they wanted fuel to be at the same level at the time the driver gets handed the keys.
Thoughts and prayers for everyone who will be spending their Christmas weekend queueing up at the EV charging station. pic.twitter.com/uEw58cw468
— Daniel (@VoteLewko) December 22, 2023
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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