NORWAY—Just like in the rest of the world, transportation is changing here in Norway. Some cars now run on electricity instead of gasoline. According to Fred Garbo of the Center for an Ecology-Based Economy in Norway, who owns an electric car, having a car charger located in town is a good investment.

Garbo says that there are currently around 150 electric cars in Maine but the number is growing. A website was created called Plug Share which shows a map of the world and pinpoints different locations that have car chargers. Garbo said that by adding a car charger to Norway, it will put the town “on the map” and encourage eco-friendly transportation.

According to the Plug Share website, there are currently only three locations for electric car chargers in Maine—two in Portland and one in Bangor.

He suggested that the kiosk in the park on Main Street would be a good spot for a charger to be located. The charger would need to connect to some form of electricity with a cord that would be long enough to reach an electric car parked next to it. Garbo suggested a designated parking spot for electric cars near the outlet so that they would be able to access it easily.

He believes that if people are driving through the area and need to charge their cars, they will explore the local shops while the car is charging. He thinks that this will be good for the Norway small business economy.

Garbo says that the average length to fully charge it is about two hours, and believes it will cost the town about 90-cents per two-hour charge session, but the selectboard will do more research on the definite cost.

Town manager David Holt said that he would have no problem supporting Garbo’s idea. The selectboard approved Garbo’s idea to have an electric car charger be installed into the kiosk on Main Street. If the cost outweighs the benefits of the charger, the town may need to remove it.

“If it doesn’t work out we’ll just pull the plug,” Holt said.


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