This past week in Maine, over 145,000 homes lost power in a storm that began early Monday morning. Three days later, over 20,000 homes and businesses remain without electrical service. Regional power companies note that the high amount of snow, poor road conditions, and extreme weight of the moisture-laden snow all contributed to the slow restoration of power.
Am I the only one rethinking plug-in cars?
We lose power routinely enough in northern New England that we know to gas up the vehicles before the onset of a major storm. My 1966 Series II-A has a range of about 200 miles on its 12-gallon tank, and I can always fill additional gas cans should conditions become extreme. By the time I’ve travelled 200 miles, I can be reasonably certain that the power company has restored electrical power.
What if I had a plug-in car?
First off, I would be doing a lot of walking right now. (…)

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