Canadian town rules new gas stations need to offer alternatives, too

One Canadian town has put an alt-fuel mandate into effect that may have any self-respecting American electric-vehicle advocate be willing to convert to the metric system. The city of Surrey, British Columbia, about 20 miles southeast of Vancouver, is going to require that any gas station built or substantially renovated within its borders deploy some sort of alternative-fueling supply in addition to the gas pumps. Specifically, these stations must have either a quick-charging electric vehicle station (it doesn't necessarily have to be on site, but at least nearby) or a natural-gas (in either the compressed or liquefied variety) pump on the premises. Most quick-charge stations can recharge an EV's battery to 80 percent capacity in about a half hour

Granted, that's not to say there will be a massive EV-charging network coming to town sometime soon. In fact, Green Car Reports says Surrey, which has about 75 stations, is the site of at most two station rebuilds a year, so it will be a very gradual plug-in revolution. More interesting, though, is that the nearby city of Richmond, British Columbia is considering a similar measure. Surrey's city fathers (and mothers) will review the law in three years. For more details, check out the official 11-page document here.