Here’s the scenario – you are going out for the evening. From your app you summon an EV – specs might be – 4 passenger capable, range of 50 miles minimum, luxury model, immediate pick-up (or scheduled if you’re one of those organised people). The EV parking tower selects a vehicle according to requirements, automatically delivers it to ground level on a lift system and it self drives to your pick-up address. You step in and tell it where to go.
Sound fanciful?
It’s not very far away. Have you heard of the Hangzhou bikeshare program – it’s the most successful bikeshare in the world and has already spread to 19 Chinese cities including Shanghai and Beijing. Kandi technology is basing an EV share program on this model and already has automated Parking Tower like vending machines where you go and rent an EV by the hour (costs about $1.50 per hour). Two garages have been completed in Hangzhou over the past few months and a further 18 are under construction. 750 of these garages are planned for the city of Hangzhou alone over the next four years.
With Google and others developing self driving cars with the prediction that these will become available from around 2025 it is not much of a jump to envisage the end of car ownership – just rent one when you need it and no hassles about picking it up or dropping it back – it self drives to you and back to base. Will this type of technology kill off car ownership bearing in mind that the majority of vehicles remain parked most of the time? It’s a very tempting scenario – no capital outlay, no fuel costs, no servicing costs, no insurance costs, no garaging costs, no parking costs, no depreciation, no traffic infringements, no DUI, no road stress and no hassle. Simply rent one when you need it – hey can’t they do this sooner please!!!
