Event promotes the use of Luther's electric vehicle recharging station

In May Luther College installed a Chargepoint Electric Vehicle Charging Station behind the F.W. Olin Building.  The unit can be used by drivers of electric vehicles to recharge the batteries in their cars, paying only 50 cents for the service.

Thursday morning a number of Decorah area owners of electric vehicles met with Honda Motorwerks of La Crosse's Chris Schneider, a long-time proponent of alternative fuel vehicles, to show off Luther's EV charging station.  Schneider drove a Tesla electric vehicle from La Crosse for the event.

Electric vehicle supporters want to promote the use of charging stations in Northeast Iowa.  In addition to the EV station at Luther, there are also charging stations in West Union and in New Hampton.  Electric vehicle owners can now go on-line to websites such as http://www.afdc.energy.gov/locator/stations/ to find locations of charging stations, or they can use phone apps.

Schneider says "level 3" chargers, such as those developed by Tesla, can recharge an electric vehicle in 15 to 30 minutes.  "Level 2" chargers take 50 to 60 minutes, while the original "level 1" chargers are meant more for overnight charging, requiring at least 3 to 4 hours.

Schneider says he's hoping to encourage more people to use the EV charging system at Luther.  He visited Decorah on Thursday, he said, because he wanted to take advantage "of the opportunity to tout this wonderful system."

A Tesla model S

The Luther charging station can handle two vehicles at once

This Chevy Volt was one of the other EVs on display

The charger can handle hybrid vehicles