The McDonald’s restaurant in Cary, NC, will become the first location in the fast food restaurant chain to offer electric car recharging. The deployment of a ChargePoint charging station for plug-in vehicles is part of the Cary restaurant’s efforts to go green. Ric Richards, the independent owner of the McDonald’s, is building the new restaurant with eco-friendly materials and technologies.
For decades, critics have criticized McDonald’s for questionable enviromental practics. Now, the McDonald’s in Cary, NC installed a charging station for low- or zero-emission plug-in cars.
“Our customers will have a dedicated place to park and recharge their vehicles,” said Richards. “McDonald’s is enabling a better environment for future generations by supporting zero-emissions transportation infrastructure.” The new “green” McDonald’s in Cary will open on July 14.
Widespread adoption of plug-in cars will partly depend on the establishment of convenient recharging locations where drivers live and work. ChargePoint and other providers are installing its first charging stations to anticipate the introduction of electric cars and plug-in hybrids—not expected in any significant numbers until 2011 or later. Analysts forecast that as many as 1 million charging stations will be installed throughout the United States by 2015. ChargePoint is a private fee-based network of charging stations, providing grid access and related services for owners of plug-in cars.
After decades of criticism for its questionable environmental practices—including destruction of the rainforest to make way for cattle ranching and production of millions of tons of unnecessary packaging—McDonald’s has recently improved its policies regarding energy and waste. The charging station parking spot at the Cary McDonald’s could be empty for a number of years—until plug-in cars are introduced and sold in North Carolina. At this stage, the usefulness of a charging a car for 30 minutes or so—the length of a fast food meal—remains uncertain.