Imagine this…you are driving down the road with your windows open, and all you hear are tires rolling over the roads. There are no engine noises, no backfires, no revving, just silence. And red lights provide a moment of instant quiet with only the sound of music or talk shows filling the air. How incredible would that be? It would be like what I imagined the future to be like (although hover cars and jet packs also sound awesome).
The thought is that we have this technology that can power cars on nothing but electricity, think Tesla, which can literally save the planet. But will it ever become a reality? Is that the future of travel, cars that use nothing but plug into the wall?
How do we Transition to All Electric?
Firstly, we need to have the means to charge the vehicles like we do to get gas, and can even be accessible at current gas stations. But the cars themselves, and the charging stations, also need to have the ability to give a full charge in a shorter amount of time than they have now, because if you are on a road trip, unless it’s a designated stop, you don’t want to wait around for hours to charge the car before you can leave again.
Benefits of Switching to All Electric
Of course advising them that electric is better, you’ll have to prove it and get consumers to switch. If we stopped using gas powered cars and instead all electric, we would see over a 40 percent decrease in CO2 emissions. We’re talking a decrease in greenhouse gasses by more than 75 percent. That’s a lot.
And switching to electric will also push the envelope on electric companies to utilize more renewable energy such as wind, water, and solar. The more consumers push for it, the more the big companies will do because their job is also based solely on demand. Even with regards to the charging stations, the more demand there is for them, the more that will be built.
Jobs, jobs, and more jobs, because in order to build the charging stations, you need workers, more cars, you need more workers etc. Plus then all other sectors for renewable energy will get a boost, which means again, a stimulated economy.
Will it be a reality? It’s unclear, but that seems to be the way the world is going. Uber uses electric cars in their self driving fleet, and Tesla is a company that makes only electric cars. Everyone is stepping up to the plate to save the one planet we have. Really, there is no redo button for saving the world. Electric cars could be the first answer to a major crisis. The final hurdle they will have to deal with is price. Once the cars become affordable, the more people will buy them. Until then, a totally electric car is still out of reach financially for many people.