New Yorker Brian Kent with his Nissan Leaf, which he's driving to all of the lower 48 states to promote electric vehicles.Brian Kent is driving his small electric car to all of the lower 48 states.
Why?
Because he can.
He is a one-man ambassador for the technology, which he says is capable of making a cross-country journey – as long as there are places to plug in the vehicle.
Kent, a freelance writer from upstate New York, visited with the Tucson Electric Vehicle Association members Jan. 16 to share his experiences and compare notes about operating an electric vehicle. He’s calling his adventure the “negative carbon U.S. road trip.”
“I want to prove the viability of electric vehicles. I want to show people they can go anywhere. An electric vehicle is the best way to take a road trip,” Kent said.
Kent says more charging stations for electric cars will encourage people to switch to this form of transportation.
“The infrastructure is limiting us from being able to all use electric vehicles because they’re already capable of doing the vast majority of what people want them to do,” he said.
Kent said the 80-mile range of a typical electric vehicle is about twice what a normal driver travels in a day.
By the time he reached Tucson, Kent had traveled more than 29,600 miles in his Nissan Leaf, and had been on the road 146 days with 12 states yet to visit. He said he hoped to complete the trip in 100 days. He said he has enjoyed meeting people and educating them about the benefits of going electric.
Kent said he hopes what he learns on the road will help the industry build more charging stations. He’s planning to write a book about his journey and the people he’s met.
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