EDITORIAL: EVs lack a robust charging grid

The flames lit up the sky when the electric-power substation in my town blew up one night last August. TV news had it covered: A transformer at the DTE Energy site had exploded, immediately knocking out power for over 4,000 homes and businesses. More than 9,000 residents dug out flashlights, lit candles and sweated the summer heat. The utility acted quickly, bringing in a convoy of five flatbed trailers-DTE Energy's mobile emergency units-each carrying a large diesel-electric generator rig.

Humming away behind a makeshift fence and “DANGER: High Voltage” signs, the generator trailers formed the nucleus of a temporary grid while an army of helmeted technicians worked to get the juice flowing. Two days after the fire, the town's lights were back on and my beer was cold again. But as I write this seven weeks later, the emergency generators are still powering the town. And the utility still doesn't know for certain the cause of the explosion.