Britain’s government just announced plans to increase the current number of public chargers tenfold by the end of the decade, ahead of the expected national and global transition away from combustion engines and towards electric cars.

The £500 million Department for Transport-led scheme specifically includes £450 million for public and on-street charging for those without driveways. This was previously announced as part of the £1.6bn Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Strategy, details of which are now public.

The plans will hopefully enable more Britons to adopt electrification, as nearly 25 percent of all households do not currently have access to off-street parking. This is a significant obstacle to the charging of personal electric vehicles, which can take anywhere from 30 minutes to 12 hours. (Either way, significantly more time-consuming than filling a car up with gasoline.)

The UK is set to ban all sales of new fossil fuel-powered cars and vans by 2030, a deadline that has also been matched by many private automobile manufacturers around the world. According to the new plan, the government expects 300,000 public chargers to be available by the same year. Chargepoint operators will also be legally required to meet certain standards, such as enabling drivers to pay and find nearby chargers easily.

“No matter where you live—be that a city centre or rural village, the north, south, east or west of the country—we’re powering up the switch to electric and ensuring no one gets left behind in the process,” says Transport Secretary Grant Schapps.

The UK will need nearly 500,000 new EV chargers by 2035

Despite the government’s optimism, the plan has received criticism from various companies and motoring groups for still falling short of expected demand. Energy regulator Ofgem previously estimated that around 25,000 public charging stations would need to be installed every single year until 2035 in order to reach the 480,000 and two million power leads required.

Furthermore, despite Schapps’ statement to the contrary, there is also a growing regional divide in the availability of EV chargers. And, in the historically underserved north of England, this disparity is growing even faster. Currently, around a third of all chargers are in London.

While electric cars are undeniably an essential part of national and international plans to reach zero emissions and mitigate climate change, they are far from a silver bullet. The affordability of new EVs (and new vehicles in general) means that they are out of reach for the vast majority of road users, with 75 percent of UK drivers purchasing used automobiles.

It’s also worth noting that active travel (such as cycling, walking, or wheeling) is the most sustainable solution, with public transportation a close second. Replacing all traditional vehicles with electric ones is not an acceptable solution to transportation emissions, and unfortunately, Britain’s public transport systems are some of the most prohibitively expensive in the world.

Where governments are falling short, private companies are exploiting the absence of public chargers for their own benefit. Both Taco Bell and Starbucks are hoping that adding EV charge points at stores will encourage an uptick in business from in-need travelers.

The Italian luxury car brand has announced the launch of an entirely electric range, called Maserati Folgore. By 2025, the company plans to offer electric versions of every model in its lineup.

Maserati’s first EV in the range will be its new GranTurismo. The car will feature 1,200 horsepower and is set to debut in 2023. Up next, the company will release an all-electric Grecale SUV and GranCabrio GT convertible, followed by electric versions of the MC20 “super sports car,” the Quattroporte sport sedan, and the Levante SUV. 

Moreover, the brand—which is owned by multinational automotive manufacturing corporation Stellantis—revealed that by 2030, all new cars developed by the company will be fully electric.

“Maserati stands for performance and luxury, and that will be protected for sure in the future,” said Maserati’s CEO Davide Grasso. “As we move toward electrification, you will see more dedicated architecture focused on delivering the best in range and performance.”

Maserati goes electric, but at what cost?

Maserati joins a number of other luxury carmakers in ditching fossil fuels, including Bentley, Audi, and Mercedes-Benz.

The move to go all-electric is a “defining moment” for the 107-year-old brand, noted Grasso. It’s also part of the company’s revamp, which was unveiled in September 2020 at its “MMXX: Time to be Audacious” event at the Modena Circuit race track in Italy. 

In addition to widespread electrification, Maserati’s relaunch, which has been in the works since 2018, includes an update of its iconic Trident logo, now ​​”more modern, balanced and elegant.” ​​“We’re proud to inaugurate our new Era,” explained Grasso. “For our Brand, this is a time to build: the time to be forward-looking and construct our future.”

While Maserati’s plans to electrify its entire range are a step forward in terms of mitigating the transportation sector’s leading role in climate change, it’s hard to ignore the brand’s high price tag. A 2022 GranTurismo coupe runs about $300,000. Tack on an extra $35,000 for the new GranCabrio. While information is limited about the release, the starting price for Maserati’s first electric car is also expected to be in the six figures. 

Prohibitive cost is one downside to electric vehicles. In recent years, the likes of Tesla have become status symbols for the elite, rather than clean-fuel solutions. On the low end, a 2022 Tesla Model 3 goes for about $45,000. And on the high end, a new Tesla Model X runs about $105,000. Other luxury electric vehicles are just as pricey. The MSRP for a new Porsche Taycan starts at $82,700; a BMW iX starts at $83,200. Even non-luxury electric vehicles like the Polestar 2, which starts at $45,900, typically feature high price tags. Put simply, they’re inaccessible to most consumers. In order to expand accessibility, the private sector and the government must increase incentives and tax discounts. Without that, electric vehicles will likely remain out-of-reach for the average person.

But, the fact that more countries are pledging to achieve carbon-neutrality by 2050 has resulted in an uptick of car manufacturers like Volvo, Ford Europe, and Honda going all-electric. And as the electric vehicle market broadens and sales volumes surge, conversely, the production costs of electric cars will eventually go down. (For example, the 2022 Nissan Leaf starts at $28,425.)  

Automotive experts predict that electric vehicles prices will drop and reach price parity with their gas-powered counterparts—perhaps even as soon as 2025. “On an upfront basis, these things will start to get cheaper and people will start to adopt them more as price parity gets closer,” said Colin McKerracher, BloombergNEF’s Head of Advanced Transport. Overall, the shift towards electric vehicles is a good thing, so long as it remains equitable.

The Cadillac Lyriq was first unveiled in August of 2020 and, following production, could be in customers’ hands as soon as May 2022. It is one of General Motors’ next-generation sustainable vehicles, featuring the company’s flagship “Ultium EV architecture.”

While the company has declined to reveal just how many reservations it has received for the electric car so far, Cadillac Vice President Rory Harvey told reporters on Tuesday that there were over 220,000 “hand-raisers” who had expressed interest or requested information.

“With the level of demand that we think that we’ve got for the Lyriq, we’re looking to increase capacity fairly significantly from where the previous plan of record was,” said Harvey. Prices start at $59,990 per vehicle, but the Lyriq is available in several slightly different varieties.

Cadillac transitions to electric cars

The Cadillac Lyriq is an SUV featuring what has become the go-to futuristic look for this industry in the early-to-mid-2020s. It has a stylized and extremely prominent grille, minimal headlamps, and a pick-up-style front end tapering to a narrower rear. In terms of colors, it’s currently available in Satin Steel Metallic and Stellar Black Metallic, either dark grey or gloss black.

According to Cadillac, the Lyriq has over 300 miles range with a full battery and can travel up to 52 miles with one hour of charge on a standard at-home unit. (If plugged into a DC fast-charging public station, the Lyriq can cover up to 76 miles after just 10 minutes of charging.)

General Motors has been making automobiles since 1908, well over a century ago, but the Cadillac Lyriq EV is the first of its upcoming crossover into electric cars. The company plans to move away from combustion engine-powered vehicles entirely by the end of the decade. It’s not alone in acknowledging the imminent and inevitable electrification of the industry.

Earlier this month, Volkswagen introduced its first EV-version of the iconic hippy bus in the form of the ID. Buzz. Honda and Sony, a technology conglomerate, are collaborating to form a new company that will specifically produce electric vehicles. Even DeLorean, whose notoriously unsuccessful car gained cult popularity through the Back to the Future franchise, is set to reintroduce the iconic gull-winged vehicle as an EV.

Many of these companies, including Cadillac, are aiming to challenge Tesla’s majority share of the market. (It’s the world’s most valuable automobile maker with a market capitalization of almost a trillion dollars.) This is in response to both Tesla’s extremely high prices, and the repeated controversies that plague the company’s working conditions and practices.

Electric cars are a valuable tool in the mitigation of climate change, but they aren’t a magic bullet to save the industry as it exists today. Learn more here.

The German car manufacturer unveiled the new bus, called the ID. Buzz, in Paris on March 9. The electric bus features a vegan leather interior made with recycled materials, including ocean plastic, and a two-tone paint exterior, channeling the original.

The rear-wheel drive, short-wheelbase model, which seats five passengers, will only be available in Europe, starting later this year. But those in the US eager to get their hands on the retro-style electric love bus—worry not. The longer-wheelbase model, which features three rows of seats, will be available stateside in 2024.

Alongside the ID. Buzz’s much-anticipated reveal, Volkswagen also released details of the ID. Buzz Cargo, an electric commercial delivery van that goes on sale in Europe later this year.

“Both versions of the ID. Buzz are pioneering in terms of their sustainability: their manufacture and shipping has a carbon-neutral footprint,” said Carsten Intra, Volkswagen’s Chairman of the Board of Management.

Volkswagen goes electric

The comeback of the VW bus has been a long time in the making. Also known as the Transporter, the Microbus, or just the Bus, the van gained popularity, just like the Volkswagen Beetle, and was associated with the hippie movement of the 1960s.

Volkswagen has dropped hints at reimagining the bus for quite some time. In 2001, the company first unveiled the Microbus concept at the Detroit Auto Show. Two additional concepts followed: 2011’s Bulli and 2016’s BUDD0e. But it wasn’t until 2017 that Volkswagen first debuted the ID. Buzz concept vehicle.

The fact that the new bus is all-electric should come as no surprise. Countries around the world are pushing to electrify their transportation sectors to mitigate the climate change-fueled impact of gas-powered cars. And Volkswagen Group—which in addition to Volkswagen, owns Porsche, Bentley, and Audi brands, among others—projects that 25 percent of its sales will be electric vehicles by 2026.

But the next frontier for Volkswagen is autonomous driving. In Europe, the ID. Buzz Cargo will feature software and sensors for autonomous driving capabilities. Intra said that the electric bus would be used for “future autonomous mobility concepts.” 

He added: “The electric Bulli is thus also a part of the future of inner-city transport.” The German carmaker, which owns self-driving startup Argo AI along with Ford, has plans to launch a commercial autonomous taxi service in Hamburg in 2025. It began testing the self-driving electric vans last year.

“The ID. Buzz is a genuine icon for the electric era. A car, the likes of which only Volkswagen can build. In the 1950s, the Volkswagen Bulli stood for a new feeling of automotive freedom, independence and great emotion,” said Ralf Brandstätter, Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen Passenger Cars. “The ID. Buzz picks up on this lifestyle and transfers it into our time: emission-free, sustainable, fully networked and now ready for the next big chapter: autonomous driving.”

Engineers from San Diego State University—led by Chris Mi, distinguished professor and chair at the school’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering—may have a solution. They’re currently testing how to give the old batteries a second lease on life storing solar energy on California’s power grid.

“The batteries are no longer good because of degradational power and range,” Mi explains. “But they can still store energy. So we put them in a building and we put energy from the solar into the battery and then the energy can be used when the solar is not generating.”

Putting old EV batteries to good reuse

The lithium-ion batteries used in electric and hybrid vehicles typically have a lifespan of ten years before they must be replaced. An EV battery’s reduced capacity can affect a car’s range in between charges. But, at that point, the batteries still have about 60 to 80 percent of their original capacity.

“Some of them may have enough power and energy capacity to use for an energy storage project,” says Mi. “If you extend their life for another ten years, you can delay the whole life cycle of the battery.”

Once they reach their end of life, batteries are difficult to dispose of. And for an industry that’s making transportation more sustainable, that’s a problem. If the batteries wind up in landfills, they can release harmful toxins into the surrounding environment, including heavy metals. They can also cause fires when exposed to sunlight, similar to cell phone and laptop batteries.

A 2019 study published in the journal Nature found that of the more than one million electric cars sold around the world in 2017, about 250,000 tons of the battery packs went to waste. Thanks to government initiatives, electric vehicles are going to become more accessible—meaning more batteries must be produced.

The potential of second-life battery use

The electric car market is certainly burgeoning. According to the Edison Electric Institute, an association that represents electric companies, 18.7 million EVs will be on the roads by 2030. And that’s just in the US alone. Around the world, there will be about 300 million EVs on roads, accounting for more than 60 percent of all new car sales, according to the International Energy Agency.

Countries around the world have pledged to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, including Canada, the UK, and Japan. For many, ambitious plans for achieving this also include banning the sale of gas-powered cars. As a result, car manufacturers like Volvo, Ford Europe, and Honda have all announced plans for going all-electric. 

While they’re still more sustainable than their gas-guzzling counterparts, electric cars aren’t without their downsides. Some charging points use electricity generated by fossil fuels, requiring a complete transition towards clean energy grids. Their manufacturing process is resource-intensive. In order to make the batteries, rare earth elements like lithium, cobalt, and nickel must be mined. 

But more and more, companies are developing battery reusing and recycling technology to counter the increase in lithium-ion battery production. In 2019, approximately 100,000 tons of lithium-ion batteries were recycled globally, according to Circular Energy Storage. Research out of the University of California, Davis finds that recycled materials could provide more than half of the nickel, cobalt, and lithium in new batteries by 2040.

Earlier this year, Redwood Materials Inc. revealed ​​it would be launching an EV battery-recycling program in California, partnering with Ford and Volvo to collect their old batteries. Massachusetts-based Ascend Elements, which works with Honda, has a similar program.

“From an environmental perspective, it would be a good idea to use a second-life battery because they’re not good for e-waste,” explains Mi. “They can be used for second-life applications and we can extend the recycling of those batteries for another ten years. Which is good for the Earth.”

Mi says the process of EV battery reuse for energy storage must still be made economically feasible, since using newly mined lithium-ion phosphate batteries is cheaper. But companies are still taking notice of second-life battery applications, including GM and Nissan.

The new company, which is expected to be established later this year, will begin sales of its first EV in 2025. Honda will manufacture the first model while Sony will develop the mobility service platform.

“Although Sony and Honda are companies that share many historical and cultural similarities, our areas of technological expertise are very different,” said Toshihiro Mibe, Honda’s director, president, and CEO. “Therefore, I believe this alliance which brings together the strengths of our two companies offers great possibilities for the future of mobility.”

Sony gets into the electric vehicle business

Sony debuted its latest concept EV, the Vision-S 02 SUV, in January at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

According to the tech company, the prototype “accommodates diverse values and lifestyles.” It’s similar in size to the Tesla Model Y and can seat up to seven passengers. The dual-motor powertrain setup delivers all-wheel drive and 536 horsepower. The SUV can reach a top speed of more than 112 mph. Sony has yet to confirm details about the vehicle’s battery size and range.

Considering Sony’s decades of expertise in entertainment, it’s no surprise that visually striking technology is front-and-center. The SUV is equipped with 5G network connectivity, sensors for 360-degree vision around the car, and seat speakers. Its dashboard sports a large, high-definition panoramic screen. There are also screens for rear passengers, who can connect remotely to a PlayStation 5 console at home.

The Vision-S 02 features the same EV/cloud platform as its predecessor, the Vision-S 01, which Sony debuted at CES 2020. It began testing the sedan on public roads in Europe later that year.

The growing electric car market

Automakers like Ford Europe, Honda, and Volvo have all announced ambitious plans for going all-electric. With more than ten million electric cars on the road today, companies are forgoing gas in order to meet the growing demand for emissions-free vehicles.

According to the International Energy Agency, EV sales around the world increased from zero to 10.2 million between 2010 and 2020. Last year alone, 6.4 million EVs were sold, a surge of 26 percent.

Big tech companies like Sony are increasingly venturing into the EV space. Many of them have already been involved in the automotive market in some capacity—creating components like audio systems and console interfaces for EVs Many of the electronics companies also already produce the lithium-ion batteries found in EV vehicles.

One such company is Apple, which has been working on an EV concept since 2014. Rumor has it that the iPhone giant will announce its Apple Car this year with an expected launch by 2025.

In October 2021, technology group Foxconn—which supplies products for Apple and Sony—unveiled three electric vehicle prototypes: a sedan, an SUV, and a bus. Earlier that year, Chinese smartphone producer Xiaomi revealed plans to invest $10 billion over the next decade to manufacture EVs. The company, which registered its own EV division in September 2021, is expected to launch its first model in 2024.

Electric fire truck takes LA

Gas-powered fire trucks’ days in LA may be numbered. The city’s new electric fire truck is slated to take to the streets of the City of Angels in May.

“Take a look at our new #LAFD electric engine,” LA Fire Chief Ralph Terrazas, who is set to retire on March 26, tweeted. “It’ll be the 1st in the Nation!”

The Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) ordered the plug-in hybrid truck from Austrian-based fire truck manufacturer Rosenbauer in February 2020. It will be assigned to Hollywood’s Fire Station 82, which Terrazas explained would be advantageous due to the area’s brush fire threats and heavily congested, tight roads. “The Rosenbauer has a very tight turning radius,” he said. “It accelerates unbelievably—much faster than our current apparatus.”

The truck is the fourth of its kind, following similar electric fire engines in Berlin, Amsterdam, and Dubai. Rancho Cucamonga, a city in Southern California, has also ordered a Rosenbauer, which is expected to be delivered in late 2023.

“The electric fire engine is an innovative tool that will help reduce noise and harmful diesel emissions while providing a flexible tool for firefighting and rescue operations from a technologically advanced platform,” Terrazas said. “We are looking forward to evaluating it in a real-world environment once it hits the streets of Hollywood.”

Is LA’s clean energy future achievable?

California’s transportation sector accounts for more than half of all greenhouse gas emissions in the state. 

In September 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom announced that the state would phase out gas-guzzling cars in favor of zero-emission vehicles to help fight the climate crisis. By 2035, all new cars and passenger trucks sold in California must be emissions-free. “This is the most impactful step our state can take to fight climate change,” Newsom said at the time. (The announcement is in line with a similar executive order by President Joe Biden, which stipulates that half of all new car sales must be zero-emission by 2030).

Notorious for its bumper-to-bumper traffic and heavy smog, LA is on a mission to go all-electric. This is good news, considering it has the worst air quality out of any city in the nation. In 2019, Mayor Eric Garcetti launched LA’s Green New Deal, which builds onto the city’s ​​2015 Sustainability Plan. 

The plan outlined goals to make LA carbon neutral by 2050, including making all major renovations and new municipally-owned buildings all-electric, phasing out plastic straws and single-use containers by 2028, not sending any trash to landfills by 2050, and ​​recycling 100 percent of the city’s wastewater by 2035. It’s ambitious, to say the least.

The Green New Deal also solidified the city’s position as a “national leader” in electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure. The city’s government vehicles are going all-electric by 2028. It’s pledged to purchase only zero-emission buses after 2025. In October 2021, the city debuted its first zero-emission Metro bus line, the Metro G (Orange) Line—which took five years and $80 million to complete. The city aims to launch 28,000 more electric charging stations by 2030. 

A (conclusive) roadmap to electrification

Over the years, the city of LA has outlined many (many) goals for achieving zero emissions, leading two local councilmembers to call for a more unified roadmap towards electrification.

In August 2021, LA City Councilmembers Paul Krekorian and Mitch O’Farrell noted their concerns that the city’s electric transportation goals were fragmented and inefficient in the overall fight against the climate crisis. They introduced a motion for a master plan to transform the city to 100 percent renewable energy by 2035 (the city previously set a deadline of 2045) and achieve zero emissions.

“Meeting our climate goals requires urgent action and a broad-based approach,” O’Farrell said. “We have a golden opportunity to work with the Biden administration on our shared objectives for a sustainable and clean energy future. The sooner we transition to all-electric vehicles, the sooner we clean the air in Los Angeles. For that reason, incentivizing electric vehicle use in Los Angeles is arguably our top environmental priority.”

In a move to clean energy, the city will undoubtedly need a bigger power grid. (And it’ll need to ensure charging points are sustainably powered.) It must also address the fact that EVs still aren’t accessible to all. A 2021 report by The International Council on Clean Transportation indicates that “the transition to zero-emission vehicles can be enabled by supporting infrastructure, incentives, and local policies to overcome electric vehicle barriers to ensure equitable zero-emission mobility access to all Angelenos.” 

But the electric fire truck is a step forward in the city’s goal of electrification.​​ “The new electric engine is an excellent platform for the LAFD to test the future of alternative fire engines and allows the department to pursue a green path forward, as outlined and championed by Mayor Eric Garcetti,” said Cheryl Getuiza, LAFD’s government affairs and public information director. 

The pop culture phenomenon—which was powered by radioactive plutonium and trash power on the big screen—is going all-electric IRL.

The once-defunct DeLorean Motor Company, now branded as DeLorean Motors Reimagined LLC, aired a teaser for the new sports car during a Super Bowl commercial.

The 15-second clip featured a silhouette of the famed gull-winged car along with the hashtags #DeloreanEVolved and #ElectricVehicle. “The Future was never promised. Reimagine today,” the company Tweeted. “Sign up for the premiere of the DeLorean in 2022.”

DeLorean goes electric

The stainless steel car turned time-traveling machine gained notoriety in the sci-fi/comedy trilogy Back to the Future, which hit theaters in 1985, 1989, and 1990, respectively.

Off of the big screen, the DeLorean was short-lived, seeing only two years of production in 1981 and 1982. The DeLorean Motor Company, founded by engineer John DeLorean back in 1975, manufactured fewer than 9,000 of the cars before the company filed for bankruptcy and shut down production amid a lack of consumer demand. (A drug smuggling charge against DeLorean also didn’t help matters.)

In 1995, car industry executive Stephen Wynne re-established the company in Texas, predominantly to service the some 6,000 DeLoreans that were still on the road. Time travel forward to present day, and a group of former Karma Automotive execs—led by Joost de Vries—have teamed up with Wynne to revamp the classic car sans fossil fuels.

Although details remain sparse, the new DeLorean electric car concept is sure to be an innovation that even the time-traveling Doc would have approved.

Electric is actually the future

As countries around the world eschew gas-guzzling cars in favor of electric power for environmental concerns, it’s no surprise that DeLorean is looking to make an all-electric comeback.

Last year, at COP26—the United Nations’ annual climate change summit—a number of countries pledged to make all new car sales zero-emission by 2040 (or sooner). These included Canada, Israel, Austria, Mexico, Netherlands, U.K., Sweden, and Turkey. And although the U.S. didn’t join the proclamation, several states have—such as California, Washington, and New York.

A lengthy list of major car makers have also announced plans to transition to electric vehicles. Luxury British automaker Bentley, Volvo, and Ford Europe aim to be fully electric by 2030. Honda aims to achieve 100 percent electric car sales in North America by 2040. Mercedes-Benz, General Motors, and Audi have also made similar all-electric pledges.

The multi-billion dollar investment will include a “complete transformation” of Bentley’s manufacturing factory in Crewe, England, the brand said on Wednesday. All Bentley cars are built at the plant, which employs 4,000 workers. 

The first fully electric vehicle (EV) from Bentley, which is owned by Germany’s Volkswagen, will roll off the production line in 2025. The 102-year-old brand announced its electrification goals in 2020 as a cornerstone of its “Beyond100” business plan, which also includes going carbon neutral by the end of the decade. 

The company’s Crewe factory achieved carbon neutral certification back in 2019 through the use of renewable energy and offsets. It has “industry-leading credentials,” Peter Bosch, board member for manufacturing at Bentley, revealed in a release. He added that the upgraded factory will also “go to zero with water, waste, and other environmental impacts.”

Bentley’s big move into electrification

The hard pivot to EVs is a major change for the luxury brand. It’s best known for its powerful eight- and 12-cylinder combustion engines and cars that can cost upwards of $200,000. But, the change is necessary: the UK’s ban on new fossil fuel cars starts in 2030. The plan is part of the nation’s 10-point “green industrial revolution” aimed at helping the country reach net-zero emissions by 2050.

In 2019, Bentley’s centennial, the company revealed an electric concept car called the EXP 100 GT, which featured sustainable and circular materials. The interior was made from a plant-based leather created with leftover grape skins, seeds, and stalks from the wine industry. The exterior paint was made from rice husk ash, a byproduct of the rice industry. 

Despite not being perfect (for several reasons, such as the mining of rare minerals and prohibitive costs), EVs are a more sustainable alternative to cars that run on gas, and experts maintain that a transition away from fossil fuels is necessary to curb the effects of climate change. The transportation industry is responsible for roughly 30 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions, and 85 percent of a car’s carbon emissions come from fuel use. According to a study published in the journal Nature Sustainability, a global switch to EVs could cut emissions across most regions.

Multiple carmakers have announced plans to transition to EVs in the coming years, including Honda, Volvo, and Ford.

Six of these fast-chargers—built by EV charging specialist Tritium and using software by California-based startup ChargeNet—are set to be installed in the parking lot of one of Taco Bell’s San Francisco locations at the end of the month. 

The stations will occupy six spots while the integrated solar panels will take up an additional ten. The installed charging stations will be capable of providing about 46 miles of range in 10 minutes. This isn’t bad, considering that the typical fast-charger can add up to 100 miles of range to most electric cars in approximately 35 minutes. 

Roadside diners, gas-guzzlers, and the electrification of cars

We’ve been driving gas-guzzling cars for over a century. The widespread embrace of the automobile by Americans undeniably changed everyday life. It gave people more personal freedom, access to new jobs, local governments invested in highway design, and helped pave the way for the “rebellious” teenager. It also sparked the popularity of hamburgers, french fries, and milkshakes. As the automobile industry took off, roadside diners that served this quintessential part of American cuisine blossomed and became part of the popular culture. And naturally, many of these quick-serve restaurants also had gas stations—so travelers could fuel themselves and their cars.

But cars use fossil fuels, one of the key drivers of human-caused climate change. The average passenger vehicle emits 4.6 metric tons of carbon dioxide a year, assuming that it’s driven around 11,500 miles per year. Giving up cars isn’t a realistic option for the majority of people, but a move towards electrification would greatly reduce emissions. 

EVs have been around for more than 100 years, but it wasn’t until recently that they’ve experienced a jump in popularity thanks to growing climate consciousness. Sales are at an all-time high and even the “Big Three” American car companies—Ford, Chrysler, and General Motors—are going all-in on gas-free cars. Last August, President Joe Biden announced an ambitious goal to make 50 percent of U.S. passenger cars electric by the end of the decade. 

What does this all have to do with charging stations at Taco Bell? In a way, it’s reinventing the roadside diner-gas station combination of yore. The fast-charging stations at that one San Francisco Taco Bell location are thanks to a recent $6.2 million funding round closed by ChargeNet earlier this month. But this is just the start. More than 70 Taco Bell locations plan to add charging stations to their parking lots this year. 

Since we’ve entered year three of the pandemic, it makes sense why anyone in this day and age would want to eat in their car instead of getting a table. ChargeNet and Tritium aren’t the first to pursue the idea of converting restaurant parking lots into a place where you can charge your car. 

EV fast-charging station company Electrify America plans to open charging stations at 17 Westfield mall locations across the country, starting in Santa Clara. It’s too early to say how this will affect America’s dying mall situation, but customers will be able to have meals ordered from the food court delivered right to their charging location.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk, meanwhile, wants to revive drive-in restaurants, complete with roadside Americana aesthetics. Tesla filed a trademark under restaurant services as Musk looks to bring to life his vision of opening an “old-school drive-in, roller skates & rock restaurant at one of the new Tesla Supercharger locations in Los Angeles.”