Goal: no coal
So at the cutting edge charging stations of the future, the driver will be able to re-charge their electric car in about a half-hour, that is, if no one were ahead of them in line [“Charge it,” November 16]. But, if it takes about a half hour to refuel, wouldn’t that mean that there would be an awful lot of other people waiting their turn? Instead of recharging at lunchtime, wouldn’t it be likely that people would try to fuel up in the middle of the night to avoid impossibly long lines?
Since the source of the electricity is ultimately coal power, would it be fair to call these electric cars coal-powered cars? That’s really what they are now.
In 1900, the race was on to replace horse powered buggies with cutting edge technologies such as steam powered cars, electric cars, and a few “explosive” gasoline powered cars. The steamers were in the majority but electric cars made up about 1/3 of the new cars in the first real auto show of that year. In the following years of free competition, the gasoline engine proved superior; this is why you rarely see a Steamer on the roads of Charlottesville. Incidentally, in 1898 you could buy an electric horseless carriage sans battery through the Montgomery Ward catalogue for $3,000; a few years later you could buy a new gas powered Model T for $400. Even then, electric cars were unaffordable at their actual cost.
There is a reason why windmills and electric cars disappeared from common usage: They could not compete with better alternatives. At the very least, how about trying nuclear powered cars instead of currently obsolete coal-powered cars?
Phil McDonald
Charlottesville
Dusty trails
Please pave the lot! It’s an embarrassment to me when I pick up visitors and the dust problem has been recorded [“West Main parking lot lawsuit shelved, for now,” Development News, November 2]. And we need parking there for rail riders as they increase! What is so difficult about it?
Judith Pateman
Lake Monticello
CORRECTION
Due to an editorial formatting error, last week’s horoscope for Scorpio was omitted from the paper. Many apologies to directionless Scorpios and to Rob Brezsny. Here it is:
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): An African proverb says, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” I think that sums up the choice you have before you. There is something to be said for going fast; it may be that you can get as far as you need to go by starting immediately and speeding along by yourself. On the other hand, the distance you have to cover may be beyond your ability to estimate in the early days. If you think that’s the case, you might want to opt for the slower-paced power of a joint operation.