Con Edison's Inaccurate Estimates
August 1st, 2006
An editorial in the New York Post comments on the City Council hearing yesterday into last month’s blackout in Queens City Council, and especially the testy exchange between the council members and Con Ed head Kevin Burke over the utility’s initial inaccurate estimates of the scope of the problem. The Post finds it “downright scary to think that Con Ed can’t tell which and how many of its customers are without power… in an era of GPS and computers and cell phones and the Internet, it truly is hard to believe that the company can’t better monitor its system.”
By Jonathan Mandell on August 1, 2006, 6:37 amIn category: Tech | 1 Comment »
August 1st, 2006 at 7:08 am
(The Post finds it “downright scary to think that Con Ed can’t tell which and how many of its customers are without power… in an era of GPS and computers and cell phones and the Internet, it truly is hard to believe that the company can’t better monitor its system.)
It will cost big money to fix that, but it might be worth it. Running a communication system through the meter would not only allow real time monitoring of who is out, but also permit variable pricing for electricity based on peak vs. off peak usage.
What this will do, among other things, is provide a financial reward to those who conserve on days like today, and make solar power, which is produced in peak periods, economically viable. In fact, rooftop solar is probably more than cost effective right now, except for the fact that this benefit is not included in the price.
Of course it would also elimiante the need for meter readers, which would be a union issue.