Transportation

Going Electric

Alameda Embraces the Green Movement

    Margaret Starbuck can’t go anywhere without getting a laugh, or a stare or a look of befuddlement. She’s
one of a growing number of motorists who drive electric cars in Alameda. Starbuck bought the four-seater ZAP Zebra from O’Connell Electric a few months back and loves the attention she gets while cruising in her three-wheeled vehicle, which looks more like a bug than a car.
    “Driving down the street, it cracks us up. My 13-year-old daughter and I get these double takes,” she says. Starbuck commutes to Berkeley and back at speeds of up to 40 mph (too slow for the freeway) and has almost no fuel costs. “It’s just 50 cents a charge,” she says. “That’s 3 cents a mile.”
    Pulmonologist Steve Lowery is another Alamedan who’s leading the charge to go electric—not just to save bucks at the pump, but to save lives. “We see, on a Spare the Air day, more respiratory illnesses in the emergency room,” he says. Lowery feels so strongly about reducing car emissions that he recently convinced his friend, Mike O’Connell, to sell ZAP cars at his Volvo dealership on Webster Street.
    O’Connell didn’t have to be asked twice. Like Lowery, he’s a fan of fresh air. “I decided to do this when I looked down in the engine compartment of the ZAP and didn’t get a face full of smoke. I knew electric cars were the wave of the future.”
    And when it comes to making waves, Alameda is the perfect town. “It’s an island and an oasis of people,” says ZAP’s Alex Campbell, who sees Alameda as a place with extremely community-conscious residents. And the terrain doesn’t hurt, either. “It’s flat, and electric vehicles have a hard time with hills,” he admits, “but in Alameda, especially with the range of electric cars—it’s perfect.” At 40 miles to a charge, you can go anywhere in town and back. Plus, these cars plug into any 110 outlet.
    Zebra sedans like Starbuck’s start at about $10,000. Since the dealership just opened this spring, only a handful have been sold, but interest is growing. And commuters are looking at O’Connell’s lower-priced options, too—ZAP scooters that start at about $500 and go up to $3,200.
    ZAP is not a new name on the Island. Campbell says the company started experimenting in Alameda in 1994, developing everything from electric bikes and scooters to cars. But he confesses the culture wasn’t friendly then for electric vehicles. “It’s getting better,” he says. “It’s an exciting time for us.”
    Admittedly, not everyone is ready to give up their gas guzzler and go electric. But as the price of petrol soars, many drivers are looking for alternatives. As sales manager of the Ron Goode Toyota (now Toyota of Alameda), Reuben Garcia sold a number of gas/electric hybrids. The Prius and Camry appealed to his customers, not just because of fuel economy, but also because of their earth-friendly low emissions. “The tree-hugger quotient runs high in Alameda,” he laughs.
    That goes for the local government, too. The city of Alameda has joined Berkeley and Marin County in a program to put more plug-in hybrids on the road. Plug-in hybrids look like regular hybrids but let drivers switch to all-electric consumption locally or to gas or sustainable biofuels for longer distances. Plug-ins can get more than 100 miles to a gallon, and Alameda has committed to buying 98 of the ultra-fuel-efficient vehicles for its city fleet as soon as the vehicles are commercially available.
    “There’s a lot of pride in Alameda,” says Lowery. And pride and progressiveness are driving Alameda to go green. And much like the weather on this island locale, the future of alternative vehicles looks sunny and bright.