Electric Charging Station Offers Middle Georgia Drivers More Options

MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Adam Gum was tired of the high prices at the pump, so he decided to go electric. The new electric charging station outside of the Bibb County courthouse is making his ride a little easier.

“We were trying to save money. We were both planning for the future for gas prices to rise and also use less gas as a total,” Gum said.

So he bought the new Nissan LEAF 2012, a car that runs solely on electricity. The Nissan LEAF has a range of about 100 miles per charge and goes about 90 miles per hour on the interstate. Gum estimated his purchase would save him hundreds of dollars a year. But there was one problem: where in Middle Georgia could he charge the battery? Gum started to experience what is known as “range anxiety”, a fear of driving outside of your car’s battery range. Thanks to funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority, Bibb County has a solution for drivers like Adam.

“Right now there are not a lot of people that use the electric vehicle yet,” said Kevin Barrere, Bibb County Public Affairs Officer. “So this is just one way to encourage people to look at more alternative fuel vehicles.”

The county unveiled a new electric charging station, one of the first of it’s kind in our area. The station is free and open to the public.

“When you go to the gas station and you see $50 just go down the drain for gas.” Gum said, “Well, this you just plug it up.”

With the new station so close to home, Gum’s drive home from work is now worry free. He hopes other electric car owners will recognize that Middle Georgia is moving forward in energy.

“They come here, they need to stay for about four hours to charge up,” Gum said. “That means that someone is coming to Macon to look at the city and possibly bring business to our area.”