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Jul 07, 2023

Electric vehicle charging stations now available in downtown Bluefield

Field Service Engineer Jim Kurz charges his electric vehicle Wednesday during the official opening of the new EV charging station in downtown Bluefield. BLUEFIELD — Visitors arriving behind the wheels

Field Service Engineer Jim Kurz charges his electric vehicle Wednesday during the official opening of the new EV charging station in downtown Bluefield.

BLUEFIELD — Visitors arriving behind the wheels of electric vehicles now have a place to plug up and recharge in downtown Bluefield.

Four electric vehicle (EV) charging stations now stand ready at the Raleigh Street parking lot. These new stations, installed by the Siemens Industry, Inc. were introduced to the traveling public Wednesday morning.

“We installed four Level-2 chargers for the City of Bluefield,” said Jim Wood, a local and regional government marketing lead for Siemens. “These chargers basically work on a 240-volt type system, about 60 amp breakers, so they don’t draw a whole lot of energy and got the capability to charge for separate vehicles at one time. As you see right now, we have two vehicles charging. They’re delivering about 48 amps of power.”

A pair of Volvo electric vehicles were recharging at the stations. The stations were generating about 24 miles of range per hour, he said. How long it takes to recharge an electric vehicle’s battery depends on the type of charger and the type of vehicle. He pointed out the Volvo to his right.

“This vehicle is at 78 percent right now. It would hit 100 percent in about two hours,” he said.

EVs generally recharge quickly until they reach an 80 percent charge.

“When you get up to 80 percent, it shows down dramatically,” Wood said. “And that’s just physics.”

Travelers arriving with their EV vehicles charged around 20 percent could wait six to seven hours to charge the battery completely. Most EV motorists would use the new stations for topping off their batteries, Wood said. He compared this to “topping off” a cellphone’s battery.

“You plug in for a couple of hours while you’re at one of the restaurants, going to see a movie, coming here for the Christmas festival or anything like that,” he said.

More EV charging stations are planned around the region.

“You’ll start seeing more and more of them, but these are certainly the first municipal EV chargers in the area,” Wood said.

City Manager Cecil Marson said the Bluefield Board of Directors asked him to look into getting EV charging stations when he started his new position.

“What we tried to do is get it in a strategic spot close to the downtown,” Marson said.

Travelers waiting while their EVs recharge can visit local restaurants, the downtown’s theaters, businesses, art galleries and museums, he stated.

“We’re trying all these different things to attract folks and get them off the interstate,” Marson said. “I’m really proud of all the folks on the board (of directors), the folks with the city who made this happen and, of course, the folks from Siemens.”

— Contact Greg Jordan at [email protected]

Contact Greg Jordan at [email protected]

10 a.m., at the Calvin Presbyterian Church in Norfolk, Va. Burial will follow at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Norfolk, Va.

11 a.m., at St. Peter Catholic Church in Welch. Entombment will follow at Woodlawn Memorial Park Mausoleum in Bluewell.

1 p.m., at the Memorial Funeral Directory Chapel in Princeton. Burial will follow at Roselawn Cemetery in Princeton.

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