Image credit :- Green ride krishna @GreeenRide
Electric vehicle ownership is often measured in sales figures, range and charging infrastructure, but the reality of ownership can be vastly different once drivers get behind the wheel to use them. A recent gathering of EV car owners from a WhatsApp group provided an intriguing look into what owners are seeing on Indian roads.
The gathering saw the owners come together to spend time with each other, share experiences and create memories, as they also went on a 70-km convoy drive to drive together and have discussions on their experiences with electric cars.
What was interesting about the gathering is that every owner had a different EV story to tell, as they spoke on the benefits they have seen since switching to electric mobility, along with the challenges they have faced. The experiences and stories are expected to be shared separately in a video, but there were some common themes which surfaced from the discussion.
One of the biggest common themes seen from the owners is the improvement on EV charging infrastructure, which has seen EV ownership become more practical for daily use and long-haul journeys. There can be challenges involving a power cut or a faulty charging station, but these are issues which can impact everything from a charging network to a person operating a charging station, and can be out of the control of both the vehicle owner and operator of a charging station.
The improvements which have been seen in the charging infrastructure are also impacting the mindset of EV owners when it comes to longer-haul journeys. On average, a large town or city can be found around every 300-km on the roads in India, and that makes the driving range of an EV, and more specifically the real-world range it offers, a key factor in making sure that longer journeys are impacted less by the range an owner has at their disposal. This is especially important for people who make city-to-city journeys multiple times a year.
Based on the experiences which were shared by the owners, an electric car which offers a real-world range of more than 350-km will be able to offer more flexibility for longer-haul journeys.
However, EVs with a real-world range of less than 250-km can still prove to be practical in making city commutes to the office, shopping, and other errands. In these instances, drivers will not need the range of a long-range EV, but a trip involving a detour, a road block, traffic or adverse weather can impact how useful a lower-range EV can be for someone wishing to embark on a journey.
For shorter-range EVs, the experiences of the owners highlight the importance of finding charging stations, ensuring that there are enough of them for a given journey, factoring in traffic and using the best routes. With all of these conditions accounted for, long-haul journeys are possible with such an EV, but there is less of a buffer for an unexpected delay or lack of a charging station.
The experiences of EV owners highlight one key common theme when it comes to EV ownership in India. There is no specific range requirement, and a single EV will not be right for every buyer. A buyer who makes city-to-city journeys will not have the same needs as someone who sticks to driving within a city for their errands, and both will require different range EVs to make their journeys as easy as possible. The 70-km convoy drive which took place was not only a chance for owners to spend time with each other, but to share their experiences on what it is like to live with an EV. As the charging infrastructure in India continues to grow, real-world range, charging infrastructure, and journey planning will continue to define how and where EV owners can operate their vehicles.