Aside from charging at home, the first thing you’ll want to consider when looking at electric vehicles is if there are any charging stations nearby.
The same was true 100 years ago when gasoline-powered vehicles were just starting to be adopted, and now there are just over 120,000 gas stations scattered across the US, sometimes more than one on the same intersection! Electric vehicles are still in their infancy, and the infrastructure to support them is still growing. According to new data released by the US Department of Energy [DOE], the number of electric vehicle charging stations accessible by the public in December 2012 was 5,200.
Three months later, March 22, according to DOE, there were 5,678 public access stations, a gain of 478. Put another way, if this pace continues, we could top 7,000 by the end of the year. It’s a long way from 100,000 gas stations, but responsible home-charging and driving practices probably won’t require that many electric vehicle charging stations. Still, the increase is encouraging and will allow for more drivers to consider making the switch to electric vehicle technology.
