00:00For the vast majority of drivers recharging in Yass, their holiday trips have gone without
00:08a hitch.
00:09This hasn't been a problem at all.
00:10We did some planning, which I think is the key.
00:12On the way from here to Sydney, when it was actually Christmas period, like you know just
00:16starting just before, yes we did have queues.
00:18But it's not bad, you can go around, you can park your car, there's a lot of things around
00:22this suburb in particular, there's a pub right there.
00:25But for those going off the beaten track, or just along the south coast, it's not always
00:30as easy.
00:31You get to Bega, so plenty of charge there, but I had to wait because somebody was charging
00:35at Bega.
00:37And then I'd plan to charge at Batemans Bay.
00:39Well Batemans Bay over Christmas I forgot does a tolerable impersonation of Cootah Beach,
00:47together with Cootah Beach traffic.
00:49Even when taking the Hume Highway to Melbourne, things can be tricky.
00:53The Dugion charger, that was out.
00:58The chargers at the dog on the tucker box, they've been out for three months.
01:01There seemed to be less effort this year put into making sure they were ready to go for
01:06that busy period, compared with the previous year where the network operators did a good
01:11job of making sure they were all online.
01:13The NRMA says it's building new charging stations at a rate of around one per week, to expand
01:19its network and replace broken or outdated models.
01:22There's no doubt that Australia is facing some unique challenges.
01:25The size of the country, one of them, access, readily available access to energy sources,
01:31which isn't a challenge in most other countries.
01:35And also we're in the same queue as every other country trying desperately to get our
01:40hands on these chargers.
01:43Meanwhile, EV drivers are encouraged to get out of the petrol bowser mindset.
01:48While on some occasions you really want fast charging in the middle of a long highway trip,
01:55there are other times where it doesn't need to be fast because it could be overnight at
01:58your accommodation.
02:00As always, prior planning prevents poor performance.
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