My grandfather was born in a dust cabin on the prairie in Colorado in 1890. A generation earlier, it was the domain of buffalo and cheyenne, Sioux and other tribes who feasted on it.
From a young age he was taken to the nearest town, Sterling. At the top of a ridge he first saw the South Platte River Valley. What did he see, his elders asked him? Cows, he supposed, and there were plenty. I had no basis for imagining so many trees.
Grandpa Managed to Win Two Years in Colorado A
Traveling by car, in any car, beyond the cities was then an adventure. His memoirs, from many years later, tell of dusty and complicated journeys through Wyoming, Utah, and Nevada on dirt roads. At one point, the so-called road was so insufficient that they rode motorcycles on the railroad tracks. It took courage to go beyond cities in those new gasoline-powered vehicles.
I wonder if my grandfather, if he was here and lived in the farm-ranch area of Colorado, would have an electric pickup truck. In the early 20th century, other people rode on coal-powered trains or were pulled by animals. The transition to internal combustion engines didn’t happen overnight. It took time to create the infrastructure.
Colorado currently has more than 100,000 registered electric vehicles, but expects to have about one million by 2030. This will be necessary for Colorado to meet its decarbonization goals. It will also help us reduce the poor quality of ozone-soaked air that can make it difficult to breathe. San Francisco has already shown that greater penetration of electric cars can improve air quality. We wish the same good luck at Front Range.
We are temporarily moving through this transition. Electric cars, adding plug-in hybrids, accounted for 16. 22% of all sales in Colorado in 2023, according to the Alliance for Automotive Innovation. That’s about 4 times the penetration rate of 4 years ago. In July 2023 it has given a boost to sales. Tellingly, Tesla had the best-selling models for passenger cars and pickup trucks. But in a few years, we’ll start to see more varied and less expensive models from the big manufacturers.
Nationally, many stories can be told about the stumbles of the EV market. The most positive cite safer sales of hybrids, as consumers remain wary of the idea of going all-electric.
Charging infrastructure remains an issue. I hear anecdotally considerations about maintenance. In addition, there is a charging station in every corner. Even fast chargers take longer than recharging. Traveling requires some thought, better planning of lunch times and other breaks.
However, it is becoming less and less difficult. Polis management recently announced $22 million in grants that will create 290 new fast-charging ports in 46 other locations, from Holyoke to Dolores, from Burlington to Silverton, in our cities large and small. from a 30-mile radius about 78% of the state’s geographic areas. I’m sure my grandfather will have an idea of many more.
Electric cars are not the solution and for all intents and purposes. I hear court cases from Wray in Alamosa about the inability of electric trucks to haul heavy loads, whether it’s hay or RVs. CleanTechnica tells the story of an experience. Four electrified pickup trucks — the Ford F-150 Lightning, the Cybertruck, the Rivian R1T and the Silverado EV — each towed a 4,000-pound car between Denver and Grand Junction. Three have lost a lot of reach. Only the Silverado EV did its best.
But electric cars have this distinct advantage, which I first heard from the late Randy Udall 15 years ago: Electric motors can convert energy into motion six times more successfully than internal combustion engines.
There will almost be setbacks on this trip. And some of our existing vans and cars will be around for decades. Billing will take time.
If the comparison isn’t accurate, I think of the transition that happened in my grandfather Rieke’s time. In 1924, the only way to cross the Continental Divide in Colorado was in winter by exercise or on foot. No road was clear of snow until 1930, when the Burgdorf Pass first became an all-season pass. Compared to this transition, this substitution of maritime transport will be very easy and very fast.
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