A walk down ‘Electric Avenue’

Nonetheless, among the biggest obstacles slowing this reality is a concern about convenience for many drivers. In automotive circles, it’s called “range anxiety”. It sounds psychological and it is. Statistics show that modern EV batteries have ample range to handle the daily driving requirements of the vast majority of American car owners, but people are nervous. They don’t want to be caught out, literally. They look around their cities and drive America’s highways and there is not an extension cord in sight.

That’s where we at NRG Energy come in. We have a plan to turn “range anxiety” into “range confidence,” starting with our home city of Houston. A few months ago, we launched the eVgo charging network, a system of fast chargers strategically located along major arteries throughout the greater Houston area in the parking lots of well-known retailers. This network of chargers will enable an EV driver who may unexpectedly find himself in need of a charge – to add considerable range to their battery after just 10-15 minutes of charging.

Mayor Annise Parker and the city of Houston deserve a lot of credit for working with us to turn this idea into a reality. And taxpayers will be pleased to learn that this is the best kind of public-private partnership, one where we, the private entity, seek only cooperation and relief from unnecessary red tape, not financial assistance. So in Houston, we see a streamlining of the permit process, an opening of the city’s high occupancy vehicle lanes to electric vehicles and discussions to lower tolls for EV drivers—all easily implemented incentives to encourage consumers to consider the EV option. But Houston should be the starting point, not the finish line. Think of the benefits to each of us individually, and to all of us as Americans, if we displace millions of conventional vehicles on our roads with electric vehicles.

EVs have true transformational potential to provide solutions to critical problems facing our nation: jobs, national security, energy costs and the environment. EVs run on electricity generated locally instead of foreign oil, which keeps American dollars home instead of being transferred to often unfriendly regimes. When charged by nuclear or renewable energy, no harmful pollutants are generated by the charging or operation of EVs and, even when charged with power from coal plants, far less pollution is emitted than would be the case with gasoline engines. President Obama’s plan to produce 80 percent of our nation’s electricity from clean energy sources by 2035 would ensure that EVs across the nation were virtually emission free. The development of EVs, advanced batteries and other key components is already re-energizing the American manufacturing sector by creating good-paying jobs, and we’ve only scratched the surface. While traditional cars are cheaper today, the costs to fuel and maintain electric vehicles are indisputably lower and EV prices will drop swiftly if our leaders in Washington help pave the way to make EV ownership practical for everyone.

But we don’t expect American drivers to make a decision to buy a car based on sound national policy. They are thinking price, utility, convenience and, more often than not, fun. So we hope anyone in the market for a new car will open their mind and test drive an EV.  They may be surprised to discover how much they enjoy the instantaneous pick up and can feel the torque. With affordable charging networks like eVgo and other EV charger build outs occurring in many cities across the nation, we think drivers will find the lifetime price and convenience of EV ownership also exceed expectations.

Henry Ford’s genius was in making a good, affordable product available to the masses, just as his friend Thomas Edison knew that the key wasn’t simply inventing the light bulb, but distributing the power to people’s homes to light them. And so it is with EVs. The automakers have given us a wonderful new choice, full of promise. It’s up to us – the energy companies, in partnership with all levels of government – to power them along the road to the future.

David Crane is the president and CEO of NRG Energy.