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By Dave Nolton
The increasingly popular electric cars seem to picking up pace in certain markets in these last few years. Although nowhere nearly as popular as gasoline or even hybrid vehicles, with environmental concerns and dubious oil reserves, the future almost certainly seems to be electric. Governments the world over are subsidizing research and development of electric cars with plans of mass usage within the next decade or so. Several companies have individually or jointly made substantial investments in this technology, and new discoveries are being made regularly. But why has it taken so long for the electric car to get here?
For numerous years the popularity of the electric car seemed to fluctuate on and off the consumer radar. While environmental concerns did increase an interest in these cars, gasoline prices were still low in the nineties, and sportier, more luxurious cars were highly in demand. The high developmental costs along with the poor response made electric cars an unwise investment for large car manufacturers. However, small business cropped up and took on the challenge. It was the energy crisis in the start of the twenty first century that finally stabilized the future of the electric car.
Electric cars started gaining popularity in Europe and the United States and were soon followed by certain Asian countries. Electric cars were being produced on a relatively smaller scale in all shapes and types. Hybrid electric cars, which utilized battery power for a range of sixty to seventy kilometers before switching to the gasoline run engine. These cars proved more favorable because of their ability to travel long distances without a battery recharge, a disadvantage found in most electric cars.
Cars run purely on electricity have been gaining popularity more recently. Infrastructural development has picked up pace due to private and government investments, with plans for widespread and readily available support for these cars. There are different technologies being examined in different parts of the world, and these include charge spots, battery exchange and charging on the go. Charge spots are places along roads and highways where people can stop to recharge a depleting battery, much like parking meters except with electric outlets. Battery exchange would require drivers to stop at a gas station or other similar outlet and simply exchange their battery for a charged one, a process that would take only a few minutes. The third kind of technology requires strips of a particular kind of material to be installed on roads. The car would charge through contact while traveling along these routes.
The commonly available electric and hybrid cars presently in the market include the Indian and American joint effort, REVAi, known as the G-Wiz in UK, the extremely popular hybrid Toyota Prius, and the more recent Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf. Some car manufacturers are holding off on introducing their versions of the electric car in anticipation of the time required for a new technology to be come commercially viable. This was the case with hybrid cars which took nearly a decade to become popular and generate revenues.
The true popularity of electric cars will become evident once the extensive infrastructure is in place. Other areas that need improvement include longer drive times per charge and faster speeds. One thing however is obvious. People, like their governments, are taking the electric car more seriously and contributing, at an escalating pace, towards the dream of a gasoline free, zero carbon emission car at the earliest time possible.
About the Author: Dave searches great
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