Source: City of Santa Barbara
Just in time for Drive Electric week, the City recently installed 30 new electric vehicle charging stalls on the top floor of the Granada garage located at 1221 Anacapa Street in support of the City’s ongoing effort to reduce community-wide greenhouse gas emissions and improve local air quality by facilitating electric vehicle adoption.
Transportation-related emissions make up over half of the City’s total greenhouse gas emissions and are the largest source of emissions state and nationwide. Reducing transportation emissions will require a multi-pronged approach, combining active transportation with zero or low emission transportation options, such as electric vehicles. Facilitating widespread electric vehicle adoption is one of the State’s key climate priorities, as illustrated by Governor Newsom’s recent Executive Order calling for all new car sales be zero-emissions by 2035 to support the state goal of carbon neutrality by 2045.
Electric vehicles produce significantly less greenhouse gas emissions than standard internal combustion engine vehicles, especially when combined with 100% renewable and carbon-free energy, such as the electricity will be supplied by the City’s Community Choice Energy Program, Santa Barbara Clean Energy, when it launches in 2021.
The City is actively looking to encourage electric vehicle adoption through thoughtful and widespread expansion of the City’s electric vehicle charging network and the development of programs that increase access to electric vehicles.
This project was funded by a combination of Southern California Edison’s Charge Ready Program, which paid for the infrastructure improvements required to install the stations, and a grant from the Santa Barbara Air Pollution Control District, which paid for the charging stations.
Anchoo. That’s a really good question!
What was the total cost to do this installation? All the money does come from all taxpayers in some fashion. I hope it isn’t going to be a waste of money, again.
More coal powered charging stations. Not to mention the battery recycling from the cars.
Pitmix, 9:57 here, you are correct at this time. But it appears that about 50% of lithium batteries are currently being recycled. I remember when lead acid batteries were a scourge and no one would touch them. They were left along the highways because there was a disposal fee otherwise. Now that has been resolved and there is no reason to think that lithium will not also be recycled in an efficient way. But there is also the possibility that a better battery is in the offing. I still think it a good idea to proceed with cleaner vehicles and not be stuck in the known but dangerous past.
11:34 am – It’s a plug-in hybrid. More than 50 miles, it uses internal combustion. All-electric BEVs have much more than 50 miles of range.
12:37 pm – It’s a plug-in hybrid. More than 50 miles, it uses internal combustion. All-electric BEVs have much more than 50 miles of range.
So they’ve been hidden on top of the garage so we don’t have to see them empty all the time? They should have thought of that for empty bank of stations at Camino Real Market Place near Costco.
Coal is less and less of our supply. But you’re not interested in actual facts I don’t think. Recycling is a technical problem that can be solved. Who do you work for?
Some thoughts and answers: We have an electric car. We charge at home, not at these stations as they are much too expensive but can serve to meet an emergency need. People without garages in our area park their cars in their driveways and charge them from the unit mounted on the exterior of their garage. I assume this because their garage is full of more valuable stuff! Anyway, there is no reason why the car needs to be in the garage to charge. There are other savings in having an electric car: No smog check fees. No oil changes. Little maintenance at all. Quiet and quick drive. And a sense of advancing the fight against pollution. Worth every penny. –
8:59 dealers hate electric cars because their service departments are a big source of revenue. Will be hard for them to keep their current business model.
9:57, Standard gas auto lead-acid batteries are much easier to recycle than lithium ion which can explode when exposed to air. But still a technological problem that can be solved.
What is the total cost of climate change to our society if we don’t act? More than chargers I bet.
Ginger- Your fully charged car only goes 50 miles and takes over 75 minutes to fully charge? I guess that is fine if you never drive out of town, but I wouldn’t want to have to stop twice and charge to get to LA or San Luis…