Memphis gets first public electric car charger
Heidi Bray, of Olympia, Wash. demonstrates how she charges her Nissan Leaf at the new ECOtality Blink Commercial charging stations in in Seattle. The electric-car owner's 120-mile round trip just became possible, and it's about to get a whole lot easier. Memphis got its first public electric-vehicle charging station at the historic Peabody hotel. The Peabody's charger is the first of more than 70 public charging stations planned across Shelby County, according to the Commercial Appeal. (June 9, 2011) Credit: AP
Memphis got its first public electric-vehicle charging station at the historic Peabody hotel.
Mayor A C Wharton was on hand to inaugurate the charger, although Nissan did not have any of its all-electric Leaf cars to lend for the event, as there is a waiting list to get them.
Instead, officials recruited Collierville resident Clint Bray, who purchased his Leaf a couple of weeks ago, for the Wednesday event.
The Peabody's charger is the first of more than 70 public charging stations planned across Shelby County, according to the Commercial Appeal.
The chargers are being provided under a grant from ECOtality, a California company that's overseeing infrastructure development to support sales of the Leaf. The company is still recruiting businesses and others to become host sites for charging stations.
