Upcoming Events

• July 4^th Kailua-Kona Community Independence Day Parade. We’ll be there with up to six cars. We’ve got a 1st-gen Nissan LEAF, Tesla Model 3, BMW i3, and Chevy Bolt signed up. If you’re willing to drive your EV at this parade, please let me know ASAP. The assembly point for this parade is at the Kona Kekuaokalani Gym/Pool (75-5570 Kuakini Hwy), at 5PM. Join us or cheer us on. Kudos to Eric Hayden for coordinating this.
• July 13, from 10am-2pm –  Hawaii Community College Auto Show.This Hilo event will showcase vehicles from a number of clubs. We’ll be there with several EVs. We’re still in need of participants and EVs (especially the Nissan LEAF, Tesla Model 3, S, and X, BMW i3). If you’re able to join us, please let us know.
• August 3 Meet-Up in Pahoa, from 9am-1130am. Stay tuned for the venue. Thanks to Lorn Douglas for coordinating this event.

Our events are opportunities to get together and share our experiences and to help the general public appreciate electric vehicles. Poor awareness and misconceptions about electric cars are one of the barriers to adoption. Fortunately, these are relatively simple to address – ‘talking story’ and sharing our cars help to change perceptions and convince others to make the switch. Thanks to all who have participated and helped out with our recent events.

Charging Station News

Fast Chargers

As we reported previously, the island’s 7^thFast Charger was installed at the Punalu’u Bakery. We’ve heard from several of you that access can be problematic (charger is accessible only during business hours). We are going to discuss options with the property owners to determine if access can be improved.

HELCO had in their plans to install the 8^thstation in Hawi. However, due to a fire at the target venue, the installation has been placed on hold for now. The location of the 8^thstation will be shared once the plans have been finalized.

Level 2 Charging Stations

While good progress is being made with the Fast Charger network, our Level 2 charging stations have been challenging. We’ve contacted operators of the problematic chargers and encourage you to do the same. Clearly, a different strategy is needed. More on this in a future update. BTW – Please take time to praise operators of reliable stations. (Tip: Their social media pages are great places to provide feedback.)

I’d like to increase our involvement in securing a more reliable Level 2 charging station network. In addition to getting the existing stations updated, we have the opportunity to help get more stations installed with the rebate program that was recently established by the State (see below).

Policy Stuff

It appears that the EV surcharge will be taking effect. This is being introduced with SB 409, a bill initiated by Lorraine Inouye. Despite calls to defer this by many organizations, including ours, the measure passed and is likely approved by the Governor (it was not on his ‘veto’ list). The surcharge will be $50 annually and will be included in our registration fees. 

Our position: A surcharge to ensure that all vehicle owners contribute to the upkeep and repair of our roads is inevitable. However, the timing is premature. EVs make up less than 1% of our over 1 million passenger vehicles and the cost will serve as a barrier to adoption. Thanks to all who submitted testimony.

HB1585 (rebates for installing electric vehicle charging at workplaces or multi-family residential buildings) was signed into law. This should help improve charging infrastructure, if utilized. A recent pilot rebate program by Hawaii Energy and Ulupono Initiative had light uptake.  Let’s help raise awareness of these programs and encourage multi-dwelling property and employers to participate. If the pilot rebate program is a guide, the amounts offered can cover the cost and material to install a 2-plug Level 2 station!

HB 401 was also passed. This enables State and County agencies to pursue performance contracts for EV fleets and charging infrastructure.

While we hoped for more supportive legislation from our representatives, we’re thankful that there were a couple that made it through this time around. Kudos to Representative Nicole Lowen (Chair of the House Committee on Energy and Environment) for moving these along. If you’d like the opportunity to say thanks or share additional ideas in person, join her at the West Hawaii Civic Center tomorrow, July 3, from 530-730.

In preparation for the 2020 legislative session, we are working with our partners and legislators to raise support for policies that will incentivize EV adoption. 

Volunteers Needed

We need help! If you’d like to contribute time to help out our mission, please consider volunteering for the following roles:

• Event Coordinator– This role will be in charge of setting up and managing our event calendar, updating community calendars, posting ads on social media and the local media, coordinating events (including delegation to local hosts), developing relationships with local businesses and venue owners to facilitate future events. 
• Charging Station Guru (for lack of a better term) – This role will be in charge of helping us raise visibility to problematic charging stations, working with local businesses to secure support for new stations, and communicating updates to our community.
• Website Contributor – This role involves writing articles for our website. The topics can be anything that deals with electric cars, charging station, and the environment. Original content is ideal, but you can also submit mashups with your commentary.

Please contact us if you’re interested in any of these roles.

In Other News..

Coming soon – Kia Niro – We hope to soon see the first Niro’s on the island. The roughly 240 range mini-SUV should provide many the utility, range, and affordability. One of our advisors is expecting his Niro in August so we’ll have one to check out at a future meet-up.

Hydrogen Buses – Per an article in the Tribune Herald, “Three hydrogen buses will soon be part of the county Hele-On fleet, as the infrastructure comes together to create the fuel for a Mass Transit pilot program on both sides of the island.” The article suggested that methane from a landfill will be used to generate the hydrogen. We’re supportive of this form of electric transportation provided the hydrogen is not sourced from natural gas. (Most of the hydrogen in the US is generated from natural gas.) Hydrogen can also be generated using solar energy and water, something that has been demonstrated at Henk Rogers’ Puu Waawaa Energy Ranch and mentioned in another article.

Tesla turns 16! A fan recently released the following Youtube video celebrating the company’s accomplishments.

Keep in Touch!

• Visit our News Page and Facebook Page for our latest posts and updates.
• If you have a question or suggestion for us, send us a message.