Supporting the transition to electric-drive and alternative-fuel vehicles through innovative research and decision support.
Research Areas (click to learn more):
- Plug-in Electric Vehicle (PEV) Readiness
- PEV Market Dynamics
- Charging in Multi-Unit Dwellings (MUDs)
- Workplace Charging (WPC)
- Grid Energy Storage / Battery Secondary Use (B2G and V2G)
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View list of our publications here.
Brett Williams‘s blog can be read here.
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The Path of Least Resistance: An Introduction
In “Managing EV Expectations,” I tried use a few facts characterizing the early markets for plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) to clear up some of the misconceptions about how well, or not, the commercialization of PEVs is going. Since that time, dramatic (perhaps unsustainable?) price cuts in the Nissan LEAF and odds-exceeding performance by startup Tesla have injected additional adrenaline into PEV markets. With the success of these two all-battery models making the first half of 2013 shape up more like 2011 than the plug-in-hybrid dominated 2012, it may seem an odd time to focus on the latter, more “incremental” product category, which lacks the “beyond oil” glam motivating certain hard-core PEV early adopters and market movers. But I believe there is still an underlying market dynamic that is both worth understanding and worth capitalizing on for those truly interested in maximizing the penetration of electric-fuel vehicles and the benefits of their use. So I am going to go out on a limb in a series of related blogs, and see if I like the view or not.
To start, below are a few thoughts adapted from comments I made at the Interagency Working Group Forum on the California Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Action Plan, hosted by the Silicon Valley Leadership Group on 6/7/13.