I am putting together a charging station package to take to
Businesses, Churches and Cities in my area. I will be including the
charging station stickers that I have posted.
I will be using this letter as a cover letter for my charging
station package.
Let me know what you think.
ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGING
Thank you for considering being a part of the electric vehicle infrastructure by letting electric vehicle owners use a 120-volts outlets at your church, place of business, or city/town.
Although the public is not fully aware of it yet, the fact is that electric vehicles are here now. I have most likely driven one here to deliver this message. These vehicles are in full production and are not custom vehicles. Anyone could purchase one today. In the very near future, especially with gas prices rising, there will be more of these vehicles on the roads. Here are a few things to consider when you are thinking about allowing electric vehicle charging at your location.
FACTS
• These vehicles use a standard 120-volts, 20-amp plug in. There is no new equipment to install, no changes to make. These vehicles use regular extension cords. They plug in just like a lamp in your home does.
• The cost to charge an electric vehicle for an hour is less than 25 cents.
ADVANTAGES FOR BUSINESS, CHURCHES AND CITIES/TOWNS
People will be drawn to your location. They will need to stay in that location for 15 minutes to 30 minutes to get enough charge to head to their next destination.
In that time they could be:
1. Shopping in a local store.
2. Having coffee or a sandwich in a restaurant.
3. Attending church.
4. Walking in a city/town park.
NOW YOU’RE THE “OIL COMPANY”
As more Americans begin to buy and use electric vehicles we will find ways to recoup the small cost of charging. One possible way could be by the use of a "charging meter" placed next to a parking place. A person would be charged for the amount of time they use a public outlet by either a charging meter (much like a parking meter) in the case of a city/town, or a flat charge in the case of a business. Now you’re the “oil company.” You would be receiving part of the revenue that the oil companies are receiving now. You are also stopping the flow of oil money to terrorists while you are helping improve the quality of air our citizens breathe every day. You will also be helping to drop oil prices by lowering the overall demand for oil when you help more people use electric vehicles.
NO SPECIAL TREATMENT NEEDED
Electric vehicle owners need infrastructure. They do not need special “electric vehicle parking only” or close to building parking. A regular 120-volts outlet on a light pole in a location that is the least used area in a parking lot will work the best.
ONE MORE ADVANTAGE
Your business, church or city/town will be added to web sites on the Internet. These websites let people know where they can charge when they are in your area. You will be known as an entity that is:
• Helping Americans to be free from foreign oil
• Stopping the flow of oil money to terrorists
• Helping to clean the air we breathe and improve our environment
• Encouraging shopping locally
FOR NOW
For now there are very few electric vehicles on the road but with your help there will be more. Just like all vehicles, electric vehicles need infrastructure. When there were few roads, there were few cars. The difference here is that you don’t need to build a road; you just need to say “yes”.
Thank You for your time. Please contact me with any questions you might have.
Your Name and Info here:
P.S.: The following sticker and metal sign are available to show the location of an electric-vehicle charging station:
4” By 4” Sticker
12” By 18” Street Sign
Your letter makes a lot of good points, but I'd leave out the sentence:
"You are also stopping the flow of oil money to terrorists..."
I'll try to be polite, but this perspective is, well, maybe a bit controversial...
For example, if I wrote such a letter, I'd would have been tempted to write: "You are also helping to stop Bush's oil-war against the people of the middle east..." But I'd probably leave such a sentence out because (besides being ineffective - Bush is seeking strategic control, not access, per se to Iraqi oil resources) the most effective arguments are environmental, plus the appeal of bring customers into the business of the parking lot owners.
I agree, also the part about using a regular lamp cord seems misleading. It probably should also be on a separate dedicated circuit just in case there is a problem. Are there any potential Liability issues?
Is this something being done by your business?
Your to be commended for your effort.
Peace Out,
Gman
Wizard, now that we have clarified our beliefs, your invited to join us as we begin building on them to define our Community Mission Statement
Peace Out, <img src="http://tinyurl.com/ysafbn">
Gman
Thank you for your input and for being polite. I like polite :-)
There has been a lot of talk about certain points of the letter on different forums. What we have all agreed on is that it should be changed to fit your situation and the area you live in. This is the final version of the webpage I have posted:
http://tinyurl.com/2cexn5
It has been very interesting finding out what parts of the letter different people find objectionable or misleading. I appreciate the feedback very much. Let me explain why I believe the letter in this form suits my area.
I live in Leavenworth Kansas as in Fort Leavenworth Kansas. A large portion of our town is a military base. People out here love a good catch phrase. Fighting terrorism is a phrase that people love out here. I personally believe that EVs do just that and soooo much more but that’s not the point, it just happens to work with my ultimate goal; More EVs on the road and more places to charge them. Here that phrase helps me. Where you live it might be different.
One person who read the letter included the words Global Warming in his version. Out here that is a dirty phrase. Not because it isn’t true, because out here it goes like this:
Global Warming = Al Gore = Hollywood liberals = Dixie Chicks = bad
Now I happen to love the Dixie Chicks, but that ain’t gettin’ me or any other EV person any juice ;-)
So the people who wrote the letter with me as well as myself believe that you should change the letter so it works for you.
I also included references to churches. I took the letter to a Baptist Church today, explained to the Pastor what I wanted to do and he not only said it was a good idea, but he let me plug in while I took my dog for a walk in a park that was close by. He wants to take the matter up with the trustees of the church so he can let anyone plug in if they want to.
Here is a picture of my dog in the back of my electric truck.
Mark Higley
http://www.midwestev.com
They are here and they don't even know it.
Mark Higley
http://www.midwestev.com
They are here and they don't even know it.
A little off topic, what kind of Dog do you have?
It's looks as big as my Akita.
Peace Out,
Gman
Now that we have clarified our beliefs, your invited to join us as we begin building on them to define our Community Mission Statement
Peace Out, <img src="http://tinyurl.com/ysafbn">
Gman
He's a German Shepherd. He loves riding in that cage. He's lazy too ;-) He sleeps most of the time. Worthless guard dog but great with the kids. He's like having a big bumpy rug to play on ;-)
Mark Higley
http://www.midwestev.com
They are here and they don't even know it.
Mark Higley
http://www.midwestev.com
They are here and they don't even know it.
Where I live, new developments or redevelopments of older parts of the city usually have electrical outlets installed at the base of every tree or in the planter boxes along the sidewalks - for the fairly frivolous purpose of powering decorative lights...
So, cost could not be much of a factor if they see it as helping business...
It's the same where I am. I was surprised at how open the people have been to letting me plug in. Citys are really for it. I am trying to keep it low key right now, explaining to the business owners that they will not get over run by EV people right now. I am the only one in my town.
I make sure and tell them that there is no special plug needed.
It exteneds my range though and it makes EVs a little more "normal" when they see it plugged in downtown.
Gas prices are goin' up! This could be our year.
Mark Higley
http://www.midwestev.com
They are here and they don't even know it.
Mark Higley
http://www.midwestev.com
They are here and they don't even know it.
i think its a great idea. the local chain grocery store near my parents house has installed two EV parking bays, with the help of a local EV motor reseller. it does need to be pushed more, range for EV is key to mass succes
All I can add is keep up the good work!! Every little bit helps. Now if we can build more wind turbine electric generation farms in all those hilly, windy places, then we will be another step closer to our ultimate goal.
Hey skooled,
One thing we all can do is start acknowledging EV Friendly Businesses.
Do you have any contact information?
Peace Out,
Gman
Now that we have clarified our beliefs, your invited to join us as we begin building on them to define our Community Mission Statement
Peace Out, <img src="http://tinyurl.com/ysafbn">
Gman
Speaking of wind power, I have been networking with solar, wind and biofuel groups in my area to see if there is any way we can help each other with legislation in our areas.
I would love to get into solar but I just don't have the bucks right now.
Mark Higley
http://www.midwestev.com
They are here and they don't even know it.
Mark Higley
http://www.midwestev.com
They are here and they don't even know it.
I have a lot of ideas. My model for a solution to our energy needs are many. The key words are diversification and decentralization, two words the energy companies do not want to hear.... I will elaborate when I have more time to put together my mission statement.
Have a good night everyone.
We have added a
to The EV Global Map for EV Charging Stations.
, if you know of a EV Friendly Community please let us know at map [at] visforvoltage.org.
If there are any problems adding the EV Charging Stations, contact the EV Global Administrator at map [at] visforvoltage.org.
EV Friendly Communities are currently shown by a
<a href="http://visforvoltage.net/forum-topic/our-community-vision/330-it-seems-w... encouraged as a community stakeholder to share your preferred future vision of our growing community</a>
` ;)
How about something like this?
Peace Out,
Gman
Now that we have clarified our beliefs, your invited to join us as we begin building on them to define our Community Mission Statement
Peace Out, <img src="http://tinyurl.com/ysafbn">
Gman