Today’s Car Parks, Tomorrow’s Fuel Stations

The electric vehicle (EV) still seems like a vision of the future, but the future is coming sooner than you think. We are still a few years away from EVs becoming a major mode of transportation anywhere in the world – but it will happen, and car parks are poised to become the “fueling stations” of the future, with the potential to replace gas stations. Much like a garage in a home, a parking space is the perfect spot to recharge an EV.

Vancouver, Canada is taking the lead on this issue, with a mandate this summer to include EV charging ports in a minimum of 20% of the stalls in all new parking facilities for apartments and condominiums, as well as all city-owned parking lots. This is all part of Mayor Gregor Robertson’s “Greenest City” initiative which aims to make Vancouver the greenest city in the world by 2020.

 Some may question why a city would mandate the deployment of EV charging infrastructure for vehicles that are not even on the streets yet. I say this is the kind of progressive thinking we need to see. I applaud the Vancouver City Council, which actually voted to increase the percentage of EV-friendly stalls, originally proposed at 10%.

 “You need to create supply in order for there to be demand for EVs,” explains City of Vancouver Councillor Andrea Reimer, who believes it is a social responsibility for a municipality to provide this type of support for environmentally-friendly modes of transport.

 

“But there is also an economic argument,” says Reimer. “If we start now then we are ahead, which means we will attract more of the investment related to electric cars.”

 

Now is the time for parking lot operators to look to the future, and start considering how they can capitalize on this revolutionary change in the way vehicles operate. After all, EV recharging will be a competitive advantage and could even evolve into a highly profitable service, especially in cities like Vancouver where the cost of energy is relatively low.

 Now is also the time for national, regional and municipal governments to follow Vancouver’s lead.

 I think Councillor Reimer says it best: “We are going to go there one way or the other so why not be in control and do it in a way that costs the least amount of money.”