Japan to trial electric filling stations

A Better Place to charge?

While US cities such as San Francisco have prepared their infrastructure for the inevitable growth of electric technology, it is now Japan's turn - namely Tokyo.

One of the most populated cities in the world is to begin a public trail of a system that "refills" electric cars in minutes. Californian company Better Place will be the firm testing its battery swap stations in the Tokyo capital, a step that it hopes will be the first in a journey to build the world's first infrastructure for electric cars.

A Better Plan?

Rather than filling our cars with the greenhouse gas producing fossil fuels we currently do, Better Place's concept is to build a network of electric charging points and 'battery-switch stations', where a robotic mechanism will swap the empty battery in a car for a fully charged one.

This immediately gets rid of the factor that has been a major drawback for the electric car; the fact that it takes hours to charge. By simply switching out the battery for a fully charged one, electric car drivers are able to charge their cars in seconds and move on.

The public trial in Japan is scheduled to begin on April 26 and will last for 90 days. Speaking to The Guardian, Better Place said the trail would focus on Tokyo's taxi population.

"We're applying the switch technology to taxis and working with Tokyo's largest taxi operators, Nihon Kotsu," the company said.

Worldwide network

While Better Place may have just launched their scheme in Asia, it is not the first international campaign for the US based company. A network of 100 public charging points, is already being trialled in Copenhagen and the company's first commercial network in Israel is set to launch at the end of the year.

The scheme has also garnered international support with Better Place raising £460 million in investment over the past three years and planning other trials in Australia and Hawaii.

Of course, the one question on everyone's lips is how do you pay for the service? Do you pay the mechanised device? How much is it per battery?

According to Jason Wolf, a business manager at the company, customers would probably pay a monthly subscription for unlimited access, or a one-off fee for casual users. So all the batteries you need for a monthly subscription? Not bad... and it has to be cheaper than today's diesel prices.

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Timon Singh

Timon Singh is a graduate of Liverpool University where he received a degree in Social and Economic History. He has previously worked for BBC Magazines on BBC Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine, the publication for the popular genealogy show.

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