in South Carolina. Photo: Joann Muller
Shaping the Road Ahead in Electric Automobiles | Mullen (mullenusa.com)
The Mullen Five EV Debuts at the Los Angeles International Auto Show
An Axios reporter took a Kia EV6 on a 1,500-mile road trip.
She said it showed the US is not quite ready for an electric-car revolution.
She and her husband stopped to charge the car 12 times over the course
of the trip from Michigan to Florida.
Taking an electric car on a road trip can be a stressful experience — at least according
to a couple who took their Kia EV6 on a cross-country trip from Michigan to Florida.
A couple took an electric car on a 1,500 mile road trip.
They had to stop 12 times and forgo heat due to their range anxiety.
Story by gkay@insider.com (Grace Kay) •
Axios reporter Joann Muller said her husband took the electric car on a 1,500 mile
road trip — she joined him part-way through — to see if the US is truly ready for mass
EV adoption. While electric cars are becoming more prevalent, charging infrastructure
isn’t quite what it should be, Muller wrote.
“We were constantly thinking about where to charge next,”
Muller wrote of her experience during the trip.
“It occupied our minds more than where to eat or spend the night.”
They stopped 12 times to recharge the car, which has an estimated battery range
of 274 miles, over the course of the 1,500 mile, four-day journey, and that charging
times were between 20 to 55 minutes.
Related video: Will switching to electric vehicles save you money down the road?
The reporter said that while they were never afraid of getting stranded, the trip took
a lot more planning than it would have with a traditional combustion-engine vehicle.
The couple had to juggle “route-planning apps, billing accounts with various charging companies, which can get confusing,” as well as dealing with “glitchy” chargers.
Yahoo and Disney are the latest to slash thousands of jobs amid a wave of layoffs.
Here’s the full list of major US companies making cuts in 2023.
See the full list of layoffs so far in 2023. – Search (bing.com)
A wave of layoffs that hit dozens of US companies toward
the end of 2022 shows no sign of slowing down into 2023.
On Thursday, Yahoo announced plans to cut 20% of its global workforce, or more
than 1,600 people, as it restructures its advertising technology unit, Axios reported.
The news came less than 24 hours after Disney CEO Bob Iger told investors that the
media and entertainment giant is cutting 7,000 jobs in an effort to reorganize and
operating reduce costs.
The downsizing followed significant reductions
at companies including Twitter and Meta late last year.
The layoffs have primarily affected the tech sector, which is now hemorrhaging
employees at a faster rate than at any point during the pandemic, the Journal reported.
According to data cited by the Journal from Layoffs.fyi, a site tracking layoffs since the start of the pandemic, tech companies slashed more than 150,000 in 2022 alone — compared to 80,000 in 2020 and 15,000 in 2021.
The wave of mass layoffs has recently expanded beyond tech and into economic bellwethers as well: industrial company 3M, and material company Dow recently announced cuts. A wave of layoffs that hit dozens of US companies toward the end
of 2022 shows no sign of slowing down into 2023.
On Thursday, Yahoo announced plans to cut 20% of its global workforce, or more
than 1,600 people, as it restructures its advertising technology unit, Axios reported.
The news came less than 24 hours after Disney CEO Bob Iger told investors that the
media and entertainment giant is cutting 7,000 jobs in an effort to reorganize and
operating reduce costs.
Yahoo and Disney are among several major corporations that have already made significant cuts in the new year: Tech companies, including Google and Microsoft,
and finance behemoths, like Goldman Sachs, announced massive layoffs in the
first weeks of 2023 amid a continued economic downturn and stagnating sales.
The downsizing followed significant reductions at companies including
Twitter and Meta late last year. The layoffs have primarily affected the tech sector,
which is now hemorrhaging employees at a faster rate than at any point during the pandemic, the Journal reported. According to data cited by the Journal from Layoffs.
Yi, a site tracking layoff since the start of the pandemic, tech companies slashed more
than 150,000 in 2022 alone — compared to 80,000 in 2020 and 15,000 in 2021.
The wave of mass layoffs has recently expanded beyond tech and into economic bellwethers as well: industrial company 3M, and material company Dow recently announced cuts.
Muller said her husband drove the car alone from Detroit to Washington DC, where they met up to head to Florida. During his solo portion of the trip, he said he was so “anxious” about the drain cold temperatures would have on the battery that he didn’t use the cabin heat, choosing instead to rely on the heated steering wheel and seats.
While EV range continues to improve, charging infrastructure still poses a major hurdle for electric-vehicle adoption. Muller is far from the first EV driver to experience charging hassles or “range anxiety” on long road trips.
Last week, tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee, also known as MKBHD, said in a video
that he believes the hassle of public charging is “ruining electric cars.”
Earlier this year, the Biden Administration rolled out a $5 billion funding plan to improve EV charging infrastructure. And some companies have also stepped in to help fill the gap. Last week, Google announced it plans to launch an AI-powered version of Google Maps that would help electric-car owners find charging stations.
A Huge Lithium Discovery Just Changed The Stakes In EV Production (msn.com)
Read the full Axios story on its website.
Do you think the range of most electric vehicles is
generally sufficient or insufficient for everyday use?
Sufficient 27%
Insufficient 62%
I’m not sure. 9%
Other / No opinion 2%
Based on 1,084 responses. Snapshot of real-time results.
Yahoo and Disney are the latest to slash thousands of jobs amid a wave of layoffs.
Here’s the full list of major US companies making cuts in 2023.
Yahoo and Disney employees are the latest to be hit by a wave of layoffs.
Over the past few weeks, layoffs have expanded outside of tech, media, and finance as Dow and 3M announced cuts.
See the full list of layoffs so far in 2023.
A wave of layoffs that hit dozens of US companies toward the end of 2022 shows no sign of slowing down into 2023. On Thursday, Yahoo announced plans to cut 20% of its global workforce, or more than 1,600 people, as it restructures its advertising technology unit, Axios reported.
The news came less than 24 hours after Disney CEO Bob Iger told investors that the media and entertainment giant is cutting 7,000 jobs in an effort to reorganize and operating reduce costs.
Yahoo and Disney are among several major corporations that have already made significant cuts in the new year: Tech companies, including Google and Microsoft, and finance behemoths, like Goldman Sachs, announced massive layoffs in the first weeks of 2023 amid a continued economic downturn and stagnating sales.
The downsizing followed significant reductions at companies including Twitter and Meta late last year.
The layoffs have primarily affected the tech sector, which is now hemorrhaging employees at a faster rate than at any point during the pandemic, the Journal reported. According to data cited by the Journal from Layoffs.fyi, a site tracking layoffs since the start of the pandemic, tech companies slashed more than 150,000 in 2022 alone — compared to 80,000 in 2020 and 15,000 in 2021.
The wave of mass layoffs has recently expanded beyond tech and into economic bellwethers as well: industrial company 3M, and material company Dow recently announced cuts
Joann Muller
Transportation Correspondent at Axios
Joann is the co-author of Axios’ What’s Next newsletter and covers the future of transportation.
emailjoann.muller@axios.com twitter@JoannMuller
We plotted some of the major investments in EV and battery plants in the U.S. to show how the EV manufacturing economy is shaping up. The newly passed Inflation Reduction Act will provide billions in tax credits and loans to accelerate the rise of the so-called Battery Belt.
The electric car Battery Belt is reshaping America’s heartland.
axios.com | About the Company | Mullen (mullenusa.com)
Jeri Klobutcher, MD
Author, Physician-Obstetrics and Gynecology, self-employed locums
Is this good? You can make all the batteries and electronic components you
want but where in the heck will the electricity be to charge all these batteries?
Batteries and components can’t be used by everyone if there is an insufficient
power grid to serve them. Someone please tell me how this energy will be
produced and stored, specifics, not generalities, please!
Jerry Piehl
My question is, if we are going green,
how do we dispose of the batteries at the end of life?
H. Joe Nevills, MBA
Production Supervisor at 3M
This isn’t an organic, free market movement. This is a government
coerced movement that includes some bogus incentives. It won’t end well.
Holly Scarlett
Flood Control & Habitat Planning at City of Seattle
Interestingly, I know someone that decided against purchasing an EV because the Inflation Reduction Act’s tax credits have strict requirements regarding the battery components and manufacture. I understand the desire to incentivize American goods and services, but we are also experiencing a global climate crisis and need to incentivize a move away from fossil fuel use.
Lee Kenneybrew
Program & Project Management at North Highland
That is ironic that the states that have the most sunshine tend not be proponents of
solar technology. My friends who live in the southeast and southwest say that their states do not offer incentives to go toward solar. No net metering, tax incentives for purchasing
a solar system or consideration for wind turbines. But the feds are tossing billions to that geography of the country vs the west and northeast. And yes, we receive sunshine north of the mason Dixon line and embrace solar more so than the sunbelt.
Dr. Donald Moine
Donald Moine, Ph.D., Industrial and Organizational Psychologist specializing in Sales, Marketing, Financial Services and Business Funding. Executive Coach. International Consultant. Speaker. Author.
Joann Muller, great post. This is wonderful news for the buyers of EVs and for the communities where these electric battery plants are being built. However, they will need to be very careful about possible toxic pollution from the components used in these electric batteries. Some of these states have loose environmental regulations and the departments in charge of doing inspections are under-funded and under-staffed. We do not want any of the toxic components or toxic waste from these batteries creeping into the soil or water supply. Dr. Donald Moine
Most electric car buyers don’t switch back to gas axios.com
Constantin Donea
Passionate about advancing Sustainable Development,
Additive Manufacturing and Electric Mobility
We will never buy another ICEV or PHEV again, just like we would not sign up for dial-up internet service. Once consumers get used to the convenience of charging rather than fueling, to the instant acceleration, quiet ride and low maintenance of EVs, and with the increasing choice of product, it is only natural that they would keep buying EVs – this is progress, and like any new technology, it has its own adoption curve.
Alan Varney
Computer geek, engineer, tinkerer
So … per OP, 1/3 of EV owners shop for non-EVs. Some buy pickup trucks (limited EV availability), some buy Harleys, some buy luxury vehicles, and some want an ICE “backup” vehicle. I don’t think 1/3 of EV owners are saying NO to owning EVs — purchase patterns don’t explain WHY a particular vehicle was selected, and minimally indicate the fraction of owners dissatisfaction with their old/current vehicle.
John Hayes Retired
The average car on the road is ~12 years old. Current EV share is <5%.
The math here is pretty easy. Given the projected increase in adoption of EVs,
it will be >40 years before they outnumber ICE cars. And that’s assuming the
current raw material challenges can be overcome.
Patrick W.
Electromechanical Technician
The electric grid can’t even fully support EVs right now. Plus EVs cost twice as much as their counterparts and when the battery goes bad that is ~30k for a new one. EVs are the future but quit trying to force it.