How Available Are Batteries?

With so much consideration towards green energy, it’s a matter, of course, that the role of batteries in reducing carbon emissions will come up.

Electric and hybrid cars are already working to replace gas-burning engines, but have scarcely become a mainstream option, owing to a handful of problems that need to be fixed before they will find mainstream acceptance.

One major concern is the lack of accessible charging stations, and as a result, the limited range these vehicles can drive before requiring to be recharged, or “range anxiety.” Most any vehicle in an affordable price range cannot go over one hundred miles in a single charge, and thus these vehicles are only useful for very local endeavors. Furthermore, while there are major tax incentives to buying an electric vehicle, the cost is still a major stopping point, especially if one has to find parking nearby a charging station. Beyond these, electric vehicles also suffer an image problem, with Tesla’s Elon Musk having said he wanted to show the world that electric vehicles aren’t “ugly and slow and boring like a golf cart.”

In order for electric vehicles to become more widespread, a great undertaking has to be started in order to provide the infrastructure they require. As gas stations are so common, for practical purposes charge stations will need to be more accessible, particularly in suburban populations. While the tax incentives are certainly enticing, local and federal government will need to use more muscle in pushing these infrastructure improvements if progress is to be made replacing polluting vehicles with electric ones.