A post-servo highway? How electric vehicles are changing the Australian roadscape

From The Guardian, 22 July 2023:

A couple with a brand-new electric Lexus stand blankly at the EV charging station, walking from one charger to the other with cables in hand. Within minutes, a crowd of EV drivers gathers. The strangers offer to help the couple with charging their car, showing what plugs and apps to use. Soon enough, the appreciative pair are charged up and back on the road.

Motorists are not generally known for their community spirit and small acts of kindness. But around electric vehicle charging stations – whether on a regional highway, outside a cafe or in the centre of a busy city – a strange and wonderful communal vibe is developing.

Drivers share tips on stations and stop offs, offer to plug in others’ cars once their own is charged, or gather to help a new owner figure the whole thing out.

It is a much different experience to refuelling at a petrol bowser, where people stand around trying not to breathe the fumes and avoid eye contact before a perfunctory interaction with the cashier and getting back on the road as soon as possible. Read more.