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As of this year, EV chargers now outnumber gas pumps in the state of California. The state has an estimated 178,000 shared chargers for electric carsnot counting another 700,000 private chargers that are installed in single-family homes, according to the California Energy Commission. Thats compared to roughly 120,000 gas pumps across the state. The number of EV chargers nearly doubled since 2023, though part of the increase came from identifying charging stations that hadnt previously been counted. The official stats include both public chargers and those that are shared at workplaces or in apartment buildings. Its still only a fraction of the number of chargers that are coming. By the most recent estimate, California will need around 1 million public and shared private chargers by 2030, enough to support the estimated 7 million light-duty electric vehicles that may be on the road by then. By 2035, when a rule requiring new vehicles to be electric will go into effectthe state could need more than 2 million shared EV chargers. (That’s assuming the rule survives Trump’s attempts to kill it.) For drivers who own a house with a garage, charging overnight at home can easily cover most needs. Still, those drivers obviously need access to public chargers for longer trips. And around 45% of Californians are renters who dont have garages of their own. New building codes require new apartment buildings to make parking spaces EV ready, and also apply to existing parking spaces when older buildings are renovated or expanded. Renters also have the right to install chargers themselves when they have a designated parking space. The rules also require a certain number of parking spaces at motels and retail and commercial parking lots to be EV ready. “Retrofitting the existing stock of multifamily dwellings with chargers is a substantial challenge,” says Esther Conrad, a research manager at Stanford University who has studied the rollout of EV chargers. Charging EVs takes substantially longer than filling up with gas, which is the main reason so why more charging ports are needed than gas pumpsboth in order to prevent bottlenecks at charging stations and because chargers are used in different places, from parking lots to street parking in cities. But as charging tech and vehicles improve, the total number of chargers that are needed is likely to shrink from current estimates, says Harrison Reilly, a spokesperson for the California Energy Commission. (In China, tech is already much farther ahead, with some new cars capable of charging in roughly as quickly as it takes to pump gas.) The state will publish a new estimate of charging needs later this year. For the moment, Reilly says, there are enough chargers to support the number of light-duty EVs that are on California roads. That’s a major milestone; with nearly 2 million electric cars and light-duty trucks, California also has more EVs than any other state. Last year, around 25% of all new car sales there were electric. Other states can learn from California’s policy. “First, states should be developing clear and ambitious EV targets, especially as the federal government pulls back on some of the targets for the transition,” says Jeff Prosserman, CEO and cofounder of Voltpost, a company that converts streetlights so they can double as curbside EV chargers. “They were leading the charge by looking to have as a mandate 100% of new car sales to be electric by 2035.” The state’s requirement for new apartment buildings to add EV chargers is critical. It has also provided important financial support, including grants to add chargers in disadvantaged neighborhoods, and has pushed to help streamline permitting so projects can be built faster. There are still obstacles as it moves forward. “One of the big challenges is the need for additional grid capacity to handle all of the charging,” says Conrad, though the state is trying to help address that. She says that even more funding is needed to add chargers in some locations where private developers might not otherwise build them. As the Trump administration tries to cancel promised support for EV chargers, it puts more financial pressure on the state. But the network is still quickly growing now. Voltpost, for example, is moving forward on a project to add curbside EV chargers in some neighborhoods in San Francisco. “It’s in no way impacted by federal policyit’s state and city-driven,” says Prosserman. “From what we’ve seen at Voltpost, progressive states like California are going to continue providing funding opportunities to meet their climate targets with or without support from the federal government,” he says.
Category:
E-Commerce
Job searching can feel like a full-time job in and of itself. Endless networking coffees and cover letter drafts can make it easy to get discouraged. And while its helpful to get support from family, friends, and your significant other, they may not truly grasp the day-to-day grind thats needed to keep the momentum going. In fact, for many, searching for a job is an isolating experience. According to a recent American Staffing Association/Harris Poll Workforce Monitor survey, 72% of Americans say applying for jobs can feel like sending résumés into a black box. And four out of 10 unemployed U.S. job seekers revealed they didnt land a single job interview in a year. This cycle of applying for jobs and not hearing back can lead to frustration, hopelessness and loneliness, says Richard Wahlquist, chief executive officer at the American Staffing Association. One way to keep up a productive job search is to find a job-search partner. Experts say this support can help keep you motivated and feeling supported. Heres how to best work with another job searcher to both secure new roles: 1. Youll gain an extra set of eyes and ears Theres only so many hours in the day and so many networking channels one can explore. So, having a job partnerespecially one searching in the same industrycan double your outreach. They can identify job openings you missed, says Wahlquist. 2. They can help you polish your materials and prep for interviews A job search partner can not only assist with proofreading, but they can also offer you a fresh perspective on your cover letter, and provide suggestions on how to customize your résumé for each position you apply for. Interview prep is also paramount, and Walhquist says a job search partner can provide very helpful roleplay as you practice answering challenging interview questions. These exercises can improve your communication skills and boost your confidence. 3. They can help you stay motivated Knowing that someone depends on your support can be motivating. Theres an extra layer of accountability on days when the last thing you feel like doing is applying for another job, says Wahlquist. How to choose a job search buddy Its a personal decision whether to partner with a job seeker in your same industryand of course depends on who you know who might also be searching for a job at the same time. Here are a few reasons why picking someone in the same field can be helpful: They understand the industry. Jenny Wood, a career-development expert and author of the new book Wild Courage: Go After What You Want and Get It, says picking a person in your field can be a good move, even if youre worried about potential competition. There are hundreds of thousands of jobs out there, says Wood. They only need one and you only need one. There are enough to go around. They can give real feedback. Not only can they help you choose winning résumé keywords and bullet points, an insider can also help you grasp what a solid versus mediocre answer is to an interview question, says Wood. Theyll also better understand what certain role descriptions mean when you are both searching and applying. How to be sure a job search partner adds value Gaining support can only help you on your employment journey. Job seekers who end up with the most options and, eventually, the best jobs are the ones who enlist as many people and resources as possible to support their job searches, says Walhquist. But be sure to keep an eye on the prize of getting a job, and keep the interactions productive. While it may be comforting to constantly touch base with your job search partner, make sure the relationship is not getting in the way of your actual search, says Wahlquist. Sitting in a café with your friend may be fun, but at the end of the day, you have to actually do the work to apply for jobs. How often to check in The frequency of check-ins depends on the individuals involved, says Matthew A. Solit, LMSW, executive clinical director with LifeStance Health. Weekly may work for some, but for others, higher frequency can increase accountability. Its all about what works for you and your accountability partner or partners. Mutually agreed upon communication patterns and a framework for accountability is key to a good working partnership, adds Solit. What to do when one of you gets a job There is a high likelihood that one member of the partnership will be offered a position before the other. And, says Solit, when one member of the team succeeds, everyone succeeds. Its not a race, and its not about winning or losing, says Solit. It is important to continue to support your job-search peers even if you are hired first and to see the mutual commitment to accountability through to the end for both members.
Category:
E-Commerce
For those tired of waiting in line to buy a new smartphone or anxiously refreshing a delivery tracking site to make sure a new phone arrives intact, Verizon’s Straight Talk Wireless brand is offering another option: phones from a vending machine. Straight Talk, a Verizon prepaid brand exclusively available at Walmart, has launched vending machines that dispense packaged iPhone and Android devices, similar to the tech vending machines often seen at airports. Customers can browse phones and plans via a touchscreen interface, then pick and pay for what they want, all without needing to wait for a salesperson. And when they take their new phone out of the box, it’s already activated and ready to make calls. That saves a potentially complex step for customers who would otherwise have to go home and figure out how to activate the device and add prepaid credit to it. [Photo: Straight Talk] “A lot of our customers, they get confused with what to do at home,” says David Kim, chief revenue officer at Verizon Value, which includes the telecom giant’s prepaid brands. “It drives calls to care. It drives customer dissatisfaction.” Even if potential customers aren’t ready to buy, they can use the machines to see what phone and plan deals are available without needing to wait on a sales rep, Kim says. And if they do have questions they’d want answered by a human being, the wait time will likely be shorter, since other customers can conduct their business with the machine. So far, the new machines are installed in five Walmart stores, where they’ve sold hundreds of phones after thousands of interactions. Verizon plans to add them at nearly 100 more Walmart locations over the course of the year. In some cases, Verizon is testing the machines near the department in the rear of the store where phones are normally sold, but the company is also testing other locations, including near the checkout, where customers can easily browse the machine to see what’s available. [Photo: Straight Talk] “As customers are checking out, they’re interacting with the machine just to see what’s the latest and greatest,” Kim says. The company is also testing payment methods, including cash and card. So far, most people are paying by credit or debit, with some signing up for monthly autopay via the machine. But the machines are likely to continue to support cash as they expand to more stores, Kim says. After developing the technology to ensure phones can be uniquely identified, tracked, and activated within the machine, the company continues to optimize how to highlight different phones for customers, including making them aware of various brands, price points, and special offers. And in addition to expanding at Walmart, Verizon Valuewhich offers eight brands at more than 100,000 locations across the United Statesmay also roll out vending machines to support its other lines at both other national retailers. While the company does need to ensure machines have internet connectivity and staffing to keep them stocked, selling no-contract prepaid phones is in some ways easy compared to selling phones on a contract, since there’s no need to check customer IDs or conduct a credit check. Expansion possibilities may also include smaller devices offering other services, like letting people pay for a month of service without needing to purchase a prepaid card, Kim says. Other options being considered include machines at airports, which could offer prepaid phones or SIM cards to international travelers, and at existing retail locations for various Verizon Value brands. “It’s just a matter of picking the right locations,” he says.
Category:
E-Commerce
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