Looking Down Instead of Up

Electric vehicle event draws curious drivers to Northumberland Mall

By Gareth Vieira

On Saturday afternoon in the parking lot of Northumberland Mall, people wandered between rows of electric vehicles asking the same questions people ask when something new arrives.

How long does it take to charge?

How far will it go?

What happens if I need to get to Ottawa?

What happens if I need to get home?

The Electric Vehicle Society event has become a familiar stop in Northumberland County. Now in its fifth year, the gathering brought together dealerships, volunteers, EV owners and organizations like Plug’n Drive, all offering information, demonstrations and test drives in a setting noticeably free of sales pressure.

For David Kuhnke and Darren Klingbeil, who help lead the local Northumberland chapter of the Electric Vehicle Society, that is the point.

“We’re trying to answer people’s questions and make them feel more comfortable,” Kuhnke said. “Give them a non-pressured environment to come learn about EVs.”

The conversation around electric vehicles often gets reduced to numbers: battery range, charging times, purchase prices. But standing among curious visitors, the questions felt less technical than practical.

People wanted to know what everyday life looks like.

Could they visit family?

Could they take a road trip?

Would charging become another chore?

The answers, according to many owners, often surprised first-time visitors.

Kuhnke said most charging happens at home overnight while people sleep. Long-distance travel requires more planning, but public chargers are already part of that planning.

One line from the afternoon seemed to capture the shift better than any statistic.

“When you’re driving a gas car, you’re looking up for the gas station sign,” Kuhnke said. “When you have an EV, you look down at your phone or your vehicle.”

Nearby, Plug’n Drive was offering free test drives.

The Toronto-based non-profit travels throughout Ontario promoting electric vehicle education, adoption and sustainable transportation.

During a test drive in an electric vehicle offered through Plug’n Drive, the first thing I noticed wasn’t the technology. It was the silence.

The vehicle moved through Cobourg traffic with little more than the sound of tires on pavement. There was no engine vibration. No rumble at stoplights. Just motion.

“It is more annoying to go to the gas station,” said Plug’n Drive representative Felix Chang-Kennedy. “There are pros and cons to everything, but I think there are more pros to EVs than gas vehicles.”

As the afternoon continued, people climbed in and out of vehicles, compared notes and asked questions.

Maybe that was the real story of the afternoon. Not batteries or charging stations.Not even cars.

Just people figuring out what comes next.

Looking down instead of up.