CNN
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Sometimes, technology doesn’t live up to its promise. But, sometimes, it’s not the technology that lets you down, it’s the people who use it. So one electric car The charger company is trying to cut off slow people, trying to “charge”.
Recently, I drove a new Chevrolet Blazer EV from New York City to Bristol, Pennsylvania. I figured the drive down to Bristol with my family would take about 90 minutes, and since I didn’t start with a full battery, the return trip would take 15 minutes to 20 by stopping along the way to charge the EV. .
I was very wrong.
It took us four hours to get home that night. We were sitting in a row of electric car chargers. Blame the charger pigs for not respecting EV standards. It’s like waiting for your table at a restaurant while you watch people casually chat over empty plates and empty wine glasses.
What is the fault? EV fast chargers — big, tall units that look like big appliances — are usually not designed to fully charge EV batteries. They are designed to pump electricity into the battery quickly so that drivers can stop briefly and get back on the road after, say, 20 minutes or so. They’re different from the smaller and more common “slow chargers” or “reachers,” in Tesla parlance, designed for drivers to park, plug in… and drive for hours.
However, fast charging can cause stress for car batteries. So, to protect the batteries from being damaged, the charging speed slows down once the batteries reach more than 80%. In fact, it can take as long, or longer, to go from 80% to full than to reach 80%. Meanwhile, the lines for electric cars are waiting behind almost full cars.
I was waiting behind people with batteries that were 92%, 94% and even 97% full, as I could see the charger screens. However, they stayed there. I made my situation worse by giving up and going to another place with multiple chargers, but there were many EVs waiting there.
Given that the lack of public charging is driving many consumers away from EVs, according to many surveys, this is a big deal.
Electrify America, one of America’s largest companies, is trying to solve the problem of charger hogs that can make traveling in an EV slow and unpleasant. Of the 10 fastest charging EV stations in California, Electrify America has set a solid benchmark. Once the vehicle’s batteries are 85% charged, charging will automatically stop and the driver will be told to let go or face additional 40-cent-per-hour “idle time” charges. -minute for taking place.
It’s like something Tesla cars do automatically. When a Tesla car, truck or SUV plugs into a heavily used Supercharger station, the vehicle itself can reduce charging by just 80% to “reduce congestion,” according to Tesla’s on-line Supercharger Support page.
In that case, however, the user can still bypass the limit using the car’s screen. There it will not pass the limit of Electrify America. A driver who wants to pay 100% at one of these stations will need to go elsewhere.
Access to charging has been a sore point among EV owners for years (note complaints on Reddit and LinkedIn). But it’s becoming a critical issue because, while the growth rate of EV sales is slowing, the number of EVs on the road that need charging is increasing.
“I think what you’re seeing is the demand for fast charging in the community is rising,” said Sara Rafalson, senior vice president of strategy at EV charging company EVgo., “And I’d say we’ve been in a downturn for the last year, year and a half, in terms of demand.”
Considering the very slow speed of EV chargers it would make sense to draw at 80% and stop at another charger later to fill up to 80% again. That will always take advantage of the high speed of the fast charger.
Electric cars are still new to many owners, and their refueling habits depend on what they’re used to driving gas cars, said Robert Barrosa, president of EV charging company Electrify America. People go to the gas station to “fill up,” and many will treat the charger the same way. Many new EV owners may not even know it exists A significant reduction in charging speed is more than 80%.
But what if the nearest fast charger is, say, at least 15 or 20 minutes out of the way? Relative lack of chargers, and long distances between them, it can make people want to stay for a while once they get it.
“Once you charge it, it’s like ‘Oh, yeah. I fill all the way,‘” said Barrosa.
Electrify America and EVgo say they are rapidly expanding their network, as EVgo’s Rafalson said, “skating ahead of the puck,” trying to make sure there are enough chargers. to meet the needs of the future. An adequate supply of the charger could help reduce the type of power-hoarding behavior that is common in current chargers.
The problem for users carrying a charger could be exacerbated by Electrify America’s free charging deals with various automakers, including Mercedes-Benz and Hyundai. When charging is free, there is no financial incentive to open. Like the endless shrimp meal at Red Lobster, some EV drivers are taking full advantage, for those who are growing up the desperation of others who are waiting behind them.
There could also be other good reasons why a driver might want to charge up to 100% with a fast charger, Barrosa said. For example, they may be taking a long trip to a place where they know there will be a weak charger. Or they might drive an EV with limited range, like a Fiat 500e or Mazda MX-30, so they need to paint as much as they can. Cases like these are why Electrify America probably won’t create a general charging gap at charging stations near highways, he said.
Charging companies like Electrify America have a large amount of real-time data on charger usage, so a lighter approach than a simple limit on a particular charger is possible. Some EV charging companies have experimented with schemes that charge different amounts at different times to give drivers an incentive to charge their batteries during off-peak hours. For now, at least, Electrify America executives want to keep things simple, Barrosa said, so drivers know what to expect when they arrive at a charging station.
For now, let’s just hope that EV drivers who don’t need to fill up to get there will learn to be more considerate.
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