Eight new Electric Vehicle quick-charge stations were installed last Friday on Interstate 5 that stretched 160 miles from the California border to Cottage Grove, Oregon.
“For [EV] drivers to build confidence in driving hundreds of miles like they do in gas cars, they need an infrastructure," says Wahid Nawabi, senior vice-president of AeroVironment, manufacturer of these EV stations built along the West Coast Electric Highway.
A Nissan Leaf has a range of about 70 miles with its 45-kilowatt battery. The new stations are separated by around 25 miles apart, which reduces the driver’s anxiety of running out of battery while on the road.
“I would say range anxiety with these fast chargers will be nearly a non-issue for me,” said, Nissan LEAF owner, Justin Denley who joined the caravan on the Friday with a trip plan from Medford, Oregon to Portland with the distance 280miles.
There are three levels of chargers currently available. Level 1 uses 110 volts, level 2 uses 240 volts, and level 3 uses 480 volts. While a level 1 charger will take overnight to fully charge a vehicle, level 3 can charge a Nissan Leaf from 20 percent level to 80 percent in less than 30 minutes.
The new installed stations are each equipped with a level 3 charger and a backup level 2 charger.
Oregon and Nissan made a deal in 2010 that the state will actively install charging stations and the automaker will focus on sales of electric cars, according to Art James, project leader for the transportation department.
In addition, Oregon, California, and Washington have agreed to turn I-5, which is the second busiest highways in the nation, into an “Electric Highway”. 22 additional stations are in plan at the moment.
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