EVs on display at the 2018 Upper Valley EV Expo for National Drive Electric Week. Image: Dave Roberts of Efficiency Vermont.
Electric Vehicles (EV) have been growing by leaps and bounds. There are now eighteen plug-in hybrid and eighteen all-electric models available at dealerships in Vermont, and twelve of the all-electric models have a range over 200 miles. Vermont EV registrations just topped 3000 vehicles and there are used EVs appearing for sale. Charging station locations have been steadily growing, and dealers are starting to stock and display electric cars.
Drivers can learn more about and test drive EVs at the fifth Upper Valley Electric Vehicle Expo on Saturday, September 14 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the Dothan Brook School on Route 5 in Hartford, VT. Numerous electric car, motorcycle and bike owners and dealers will be displaying their vehicles, answering your questions, and offering test rides for a first-hand experience. Starting at noon, there will be workshops by Dave Roberts from Drive Electric Vermont, Green Mountain Power and others on EV charging technology, costs, financing, policy and more. A selection of battery-driven lawn and garden tools will be on display, and several solar companies will be on hand to talk with you about using the sun to charge your EV.
There are many reasons to change over to an electric vehicle. They are much cleaner than a gasoline-powered car and better for our health and the environment (assuming ‘clean’ sources of electricity, of course). They cost about half of what a gas car costs to fuel up and maintenance costs are a fraction too, because there are no oil changes, no exhaust systems, and brakes last longer from using the motor as a generator to recharge the battery while braking and stopping. They accelerate quickly for easy highway access. They are also quieter and ride very nicely with the weight of the batteries down low in the vehicle, adding stability during cornering and in bad weather.
There will be free refreshments contributed by Hanover Food Co-op, King Arthur Flour and others, including King Arthur Flour cookies baked on site in Solaflect’s solar-powered oven.
This Expo is free and open to everyone. If you would like to attend, volunteer to help, or bring your EV to display, please go to our website and sign up. Everyone registering will be entered into a free raffle. Sponsor information and more details are on the website at www.uvevexpo.org.
The Upper Valley (UV) EV Expo is organized by several UV town energy committee members, with help from the UV Sierra Club and Vital Communities, as part of National Drive Electric Week, which is presented by Sierra Club, the Electric Automobile Association, and Plug in America.
Local sponsors who are helping to make this event possible include: Catamount Solar, Cyclewise, Green Mountain Power, Lyme Green Heat, Norwich Solar Technologies, Omer and Bob’s, ReVision Energy, Solaflect Energy, Sun Catcher, SunCommon, and Team Nissan North.
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