The government has announced comprehensive measures to address the recent electric vehicle fires in apartment underground parking lots. In a situation where there has been much talk and controversy over policies over the past month, the government’s comprehensive measures provide an important starting point.


As a writer who has provided opinions on various measures so far, I believe that we need to definitely put an end to 'electric car phobia' through more diverse measures. This issue can be said to be a vague fear of closed spaces, such as underground parking and charging of electric vehicles, which is unique to Korea and not found in other countries, and thus it is a task that needs to be overcome as soon as possible.

A variety of opinions were reflected in this comprehensive plan. There were cases where a significant portion of the opinions that had already been expressed were organized, and it can be said that there were many traces of thought put into it.

There were also methods to fundamentally prevent electric vehicle fires, such as systematically managing the BMS, a battery management system, early introduction of a battery certification system, strengthening inspection standards, warning apps through a battery monitoring system, distribution of smart control slow chargers for overcharging prevention and charging control, and annual replacement of some of the existing slow chargers with charging control functions.

In addition, it could be said that all integrated measures from each ministry were brought together, such as reinforcing spring cooler facilities and various suppression facilities, introducing wireless small fire trucks, and developing all-solid-state batteries that fundamentally prevent fires in case an electric vehicle fire occurs in an underground space.

Nevertheless, why is this comprehensive plan so disappointing? Of course, I have already organized and provided various measures to the government and requested more definite measures.

Among these, the most important part is to analyze the actual causes of electric vehicle fires and establish clear countermeasures for each factor.

The most regrettable part of this comprehensive plan is that it does not directly address the anxiety of apartment complex residents.

In other words, the current phobia is that it is important to have reliable measures to fundamentally prevent electric vehicle fires in closed spaces, but the measures for this are relatively inadequate.

Future supplementary measures for this will be important. Of course, it will also be important to listen to and confirm the opinions of various places representing the housing unit occupancy committees regarding the announcement of this measure.

In reality, if the satisfaction level with this comprehensive plan is high, there is nothing to say, but in reality, it will be difficult. So what parts are needed? I emphasized this part in the government proposal.

First, we need to confirm the terms that have become taboo in this government: 'overcharging' and 'charging control.'

Why was this term omitted in this presentation? This is a term that I had to emphasize. It is a term that has been mentioned by experts all the time and has important implications for reducing electric vehicle fires.

This term is said to contain a part that practically reduces the fear of apartment residents in underground spaces.

In other words, it is a method that can directly reduce electric vehicle fires in underground spaces, and although it is a temporary concept, the direct method is ‘charging control.’

Currently, all of the approximately 310,000 slow chargers installed in apartment complexes across the country do not have the charging control function mentioned by the government.

This accident has shown that it is impossible to forcibly control the charging amount in underground charging stations, and so the idea has emerged to temporarily encourage electric vehicle owners to voluntarily lower the charging amount in underground spaces in order to overcome this phobia.

As soon as this part was mentioned, SNS and other places began to indiscriminately attack the author and to expand and reproduce the work of bringing it up. The reason why the controversy over this has grown is that I am worried that the electric car owners are distorting and pushing forward without even knowing the meaning while suspecting orders from those around them.

In other words, I would like to mention that this is not an infringement on the personal property of electric vehicle owners, but an exit strategy. Rather, I urge self-restraint, fearing that excessive pressure may lead to defamation or the spread of false information. I hope that they will proceed after confirming that there are no legal issues. In particular, I am wary of excessive lobbying or gagging by the automobile industry. The charging control method is a proven method with countless examples.

Of course, the automobile industry is concerned that the decline in driving range due to the decrease in charging rate will become more serious, and electric vehicle stocks, which should be praised, are also vaguely anxious that the decline in their already low driving range will be accelerated and that it will become more difficult to park in underground parking lots.

However, if the current situation is left as it is, the vague anxiety in each apartment may further increase the anxiety of parking ban and charging ban. I would like to mention that this is an exit power and an expert opinion to quickly reduce the phobia. In fact, it is free for the government, local governments, apartments, etc. to introduce this method, and it can be considered a temporary solution. In particular, I would like to emphasize that there will definitely be no permanent restrictions that the automobile industry and electric vehicle owners are worried about.

However, given the concerns of the automobile industry and electric vehicle owners, we will also need to consider moving forward with using chargers with charging control functions.

Of course, in order to control the slow chargers, the government is recently introducing new 'smart control slow chargers', as well as replacing existing slow chargers, which are important methods.

In this announcement, it was mentioned that approximately 20,000 slow chargers that are already installed will be replaced next year and 30,000 the year after that, but this still means that even after two years, more than 250,000 units will remain without charging control functions.

In this situation, will the residents of apartment complexes like this tolerate it? In other words, there is a limitation that there are very few direct alternatives. No one else but me has mentioned this. Is the problem solved? Perhaps because of the recent pressure, all the experts have disappeared from the parrot-like comments.

In any case, going forward, the government must focus its energies on coming up with practical ways to directly alleviate the anxiety of those on the front lines.

This means that experts in each field should express their opinions in good conscience without being pressured or instigated by anyone. They should not turn away from principles and truth and make the mistake of thinking that they can cover the sky with their palm. If a similar major accident occurs in an underground space even once more, who will take responsibility? Will they blame someone else then? This is not about creating anxiety, but about finding the best possible direct method and devising fundamental measures. This is how safety is guaranteed.

In addition, the author mentioned the introduction of a certification system through 3D full inspection of battery cells, which is one of the causes of electric vehicle fires. The three domestic battery companies know more about this than anyone else, and some companies have completed or are in the process of doing so.

The battery certification system currently mentioned by the government is good, but this method is a certification and history system for battery packs, so it is very different from the 3D full-scale inspection of battery cells conducted during the battery manufacturing process.

If we completely eliminate defective battery cells from the beginning and systematically manage the BMS of the manufacturer, electric vehicle fires will be greatly reduced in the future.

Here, we also need electric vehicle safety education that is not available now. No one mentions the various education that I emphasize, such as not scraping the bottom of the electric vehicle on the speed bump, avoiding entering a flooded road, not charging with wet hands, and emergency evacuation manuals in case of electric vehicle fire. The current number of electric vehicle fires is mentioned as lower than that of internal combustion engine vehicles, but as the number of old electric vehicles increases, electric vehicle fire accidents will increase and concerns will increase. If electric vehicles are repeatedly driven roughly and recklessly, they will age and cause defects in battery cells, which can lead to electric vehicle fires. Therefore, electric vehicle owners may be held responsible for fires in the future. The idea is to prepare in advance and reduce the number of confirmed electric vehicle fires, and to promote the distribution of electric vehicles with safety as a prerequisite.

The phobia about electric vehicle fires will soon subside. I hope that the current attacks on me will not go in the wrong direction and will quickly refrain from doing so. I hope that the relevant sites will correct their wrong direction of increasing their number of views with unnecessary noise marketing. I hope that you will not shake the author who has lived in various mobility fields for decades for the public interest and national development.

At the same time, I commend the government's efforts in comprehensive measures, and I hope that it will now make policy supplements with firm confidence and firm will. I also hope that it will not be concerned about what others think.

I hope that the time will come soon when the negative views on electric vehicles will disappear, electric vehicles will be praised, and everyone will positively view electric vehicles.