Unpacking the EV Charger War with Andrew Russell

07/26/23 • 43 min

If you have a gas car, you never really need to double-check which gas station you go to when you fill up. Every gas station in North America is compatible with every personal vehicle. This standardized fuel network enables our gas-driven transportation system in a way that most of us don't notice on a day-to-day basis.
If you have an electric vehicle, though, you do notice this. Or rather, you notice that a similar network is missing. There are currently 3 different charging standards for EV's in the US, so drivers have to routinely check maps to find compatible chargers or purchase and travel with expensive adaptors. The lack of charger standardization and availability has stood as one of the larger barriers to EV adoption in the US, which currently sit at a paltry 6% of total vehicle sales.
This needs to change quickly in order to meet the ambitious goals set by the Biden administration and car manufacturers and to eliminate the use of fossil fuels as quickly as possible. Fortunately, the majority of the major US-based automakers announced this summer that they would be transitioning to Tesla's North American Charging Standard (NACS) by 2025, opening a path to total standardization across the US EV charging network.
This week, we're diving into how and why this standardization process unfolded and why technical standards matter when it comes to technological transformation. We're joined this week by Andrew Russell, Officer-In-Charge and Professor of Science and Technology History and SUNY Polytechnic Institute.

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Intro/Outro Music: See a Brighter Day/Gloria Tells
Courtesy of Epidemic Sound
(Episodes 1-159: Intro/Outro Music: Focal Point/Young Community
Courtesy of Epidemic Sound)

Previous Episode

Replay: Getting America Online with Kathryn De Wit

Over the past few weeks, we've seen a host of state governments triumphantly announcing the arrival of federal funds - usually over $1 billion apiece - to expand broadband access, particularly to rural communities.
The seeds of this arrival were planted nearly two years ago, when Congress passed the Infrastructure and Jobs Act. The wheels of government do spin slowly, but hopefully the scope and scale of this investment will pay major dividends for those Americans currently without quality, affordable internet.
So with this next step beginning in the fight for internet access, we thought it would be a good time to revisit an interview we conducted last year with Kathryn de Wit, Project Director of the Broadband Access Initiative at The Pew Charitable Trusts.
More from The Pew Charitable Trusts' Broadband Access Initiative: https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/projects/broadband-access-initiative
This episode originally aired March 1, 2022.

Next Episode

Building Flood-Resistant Communities with Mathew Sanders

This past July, a series of severe floods devastated central Vermont. After more than a decade of drought, early 2023 brought a series of 12 "atmospheric rivers" to California, dumping trillions of gallons of water up and down the coast and causing billions of dollars in damage. Last summer, parts of Eastern Kentucky experienced more than a foot of rainfall in less than 5 days. Rivers swelled and coursed through small Appalachian towns, claiming the lives of 59 people.
All over the United States, the frequency and intensity of floods increase. Cities and towns are often underprepared for these events and lack the resources to respond effectively. Our nation needs a more comprehensive framework for dealing with disaster that includes cooperation between federal, state, and local actors.
To discuss the challenges and requirements of building an effective flood resilience system, we're joined this week by Mathew Sanders, the State Resilience Policy Portfolio Lead at the Pew Charitable Trusts.
Learn more about Pew's Flood-Prepared Communities Project