1914 EVAA Electric Touring Discussion
Report of the Committee on Garages and Rates
The next paper on the program was the report of the Committee on Garages and Rates, prepared by Mr. J. F. Gilchrist, of Chicago, and Vice-President of the Electric Vehicle Association of America. In the absence of Mr. Gilchrist, the report was read by Mr. George B. Foster. In connection with this report, Mr. Foster stated that in endeavoring to get the information as to charging stations, the letter sent to the managers of central stations, in many cases, received no attention whatever. The letters had to be written to garages, hotels and to various city officials in order to get any information whatever in regard to some of the charging stations, which, of course, made it very difficult for an individual to start out and plan a trip by an electric vehicle without having some place to go to for accurate information. Following this report, an interesting discussion took place as to whether or not the electric could be considered as a touring car. Mr. George H. Kelly stated that every electric vehicle manufacturer, with perhaps one exception, advertises the electric vehicle as a town car, making no claims that it is a touring car. If we endeavor to advocate the electric vehicle as a touring car, the first thing we get from a customer is an inquiry for a car that will do this touring and there is no manufacturer to-day, with one possible exception, who even claims that there is such a car. Publicity to this end seems to be wrong publicity. We are trying to show to the public the electric vehicle as a touring proposition and we know, at least we feel we know, that it is not a touring proposition. Mr. Kelly stated that there are in this country 225 cities with a population of over 25,000 people and that these 225 cities represent the market for electric vehicles. Over 90 per cent of the electric vehicles in use at the present time are in less than one hundred of these cities. It seems to me, said Mr. Kelly, that the Garage and Rate Committee could much better devote their energies to endeavoring to accomplish some construction work in reference to the cities where the manufacturers are actually selling cars, where the market is, and not go out and spend their efforts through sections of the country that have never been productive of any sales in the electric vehicle business.
Mr. E. S. Mansfield, as a member of this committee, stated that in getting up the report and in working out the statistics, they were not trying to advertise the electric passenger vehicle as a touring car or attempt to advertise the Lincoln Highway to any extent. The committee felt, however, that some specific point to attack would be advantageous at this time. The fact that there are no electrics in a town or city does not mean there are not going to be some, and if the Association can get a chain of garages along the Lincoln Highway, it will have a tendency to bring about the installation of garages in other sections where it is almost impossible to get service at the present time.
Mr. Day Baker, of Boston, believes that the time is coming when we will be able to tour with electric vehicles. I have no hesitancy at all, said Mr. Baker, in running from Boston to Providence or Providence to New London and have made a number of these trips during the past year. Mr. Charles M. Marsh. one of the party of five who brought President Wilson’s greeting to the Convention from Washington in an electric vehicle, stated that he did not consider the electric vehicle suited to touring work, although he had but little trouble in making the run. The real difficulty seemed to be in a lack of proper charging facilities. I feel to a certain extent that Mr. Kelly is right, said Mr. Marsh, in that we should not recommend people to go touring with the ordinary facilities that we have to-day, but if we can get charging stations, there is no reason why a person, who owns a town car, and desires to go away over Sunday or several times during the summer, should not be able to do so, and this would be entirely practicable with the electric if proper charging facilities at reasonable rates could be obtained and over roads that were suitable to electrics. Mr. Marsh then showed by lantern slides many interesting views and conditions along the road, which he took in his electric from Washington to Philadelphia.
In further discussing the report, Mr. S. G. Thompson quoted from the remarks of Dr. Steinmetz, made before the National Electric Light Association Convention this year, in saying that the future of the electric passenger vehicles lies primarily in cities for city work. This is the application which the manufacturers of the passenger electric vehicle have indicated and in nearly every case are now advocating. Thus Mr. Thompson concurred with Mr. Kelly in his opinion that the electric is, certainly for the present at least, distinctly a city car.
The electric for touring, however, is not without its advocates. Mr. James M. Skinner believes that with a high enough capacity battery and a proper car, it is possible to tour anywhere between Washington and Boston, he having made a number of runs in this way without any trouble, using simply a stock car with a stock battery. On one occasion, Mr. Skinner made the trip from New York to Boston and return. The trip one way was made in less than twenty-four hours and he found no trouble in making forty and as high as fifty miles between charging stations. Mr. Skinner states that in the eastern part of the United States, at least, touring with an electric vehicle is perfectly feasible even now. In making the above runs, Mr. Skinner stated that 13 and 15 thin-plate batteries were used and in no case was a 17-plate battery employed and in no case any more than the ordinary 35 to fo-cell equipment. They were standard batteries in standard bodies. The car in which Mr. Marsh made his run from Washington to Philadelphia was equipped with a standard 9-plate, 28-cell “Ironclad-Exide” battery, the same batteries having been used for some time previous in Washington. In fact, the same battery has been in use in this car for nearly two years.
Mr. Baker stated that with his old car, which he has had eight years, and a battery consisting of 30 cells of II G. V. X. plates, he has had no difficulty in making sixty miles on ordinarily good roads. Mr. P. D. Wagoner places the passenger electric as a touring proposition in the dim future when he stated that his personal feeling on the subject was that until touring in an electric could be made at greater average speed than is obtainable at present or until such time as the car could be operated for the full distance desired without boosting, or until such time as the battery could be recharged or boosted in the same time that it takes to fill a gasoline tank, the electric would have to be considered as a city car.
Mr. Harvey Robinson stated that the New York people have been active in compiling a list of charging stations and would like to see some activities in other centers. He would further like to see each of these centers linked up as the links of a chain and guide books issued giving the location of these charging stations together with rates and other essential information.
In view of all the interesting discussion which was brought forth on this report, it was not only unanimously adopted but received a special vote of thanks, Mr. Kelly having withdrawn his previous motion to have the report laid on the table.
Source: 155 (p. 147) Central station : the “electrical quarterly” of … v.14 1914-1915. LINK