Initially, the goal was (and still is) to fill the landscape with as many EV charging stations as possible. Of course, the reality is that most charging happens at home for EV owners with driveways and garages, but for apartment dwellers and road trippers, a robust charging network is essential to the continued adoption of these vehicles. But as these stations become more common, they’ll need to be more than just a few parking spaces in the far corners of parking lots.
Who needs a Level 2 electric car charging station at home?
A few years ago, non-Tesla EV owners were lucky if they could find a working station somewhere along the route. Finding a place to plug in was a herculean task because EVs didn’t detect stations through their in-car navigation, and most EV charging apps didn’t show competitor stations, while those companies required drivers to sign up for an account to pay instead of just using a credit or debit card reader. Some still require accounts, which defies logic at this point. Fortunately, some of those ridiculous hurdles have largely been addressed to some extent. So as these companies continue to expand their charging networks, it’s time to upgrade those stations.
It’s safe to say that many EV owners are enjoying their technology too. The first-adopter vibe is strong in the electric vehicle world. The automotive world is undergoing a tech revolution, with more and more automakers showing off the next generation of vehicle features before power and torque. The electric vehicle is currently the pinnacle of what’s happening in the transportation world. So it’s strange when an EV driver pulls up to a station and realizes they’ve been parked in a no-service area and there’s no Wi-Fi.
I’ve heard the horror stories of people arriving at a station and discovering that the app they need to charge doesn’t work because the driver’s phone doesn’t have enough bars to start charging. I find it hard to imagine a station being placed in an area with no network connectivity for all carriers without adding wifi to that area. All charging stations should really have a wifi hotspot.
