The Race to Democratize Charging Infrastructure

According to a June 2021 study by the Fuels Institute, the top EV owner demographic in 2019 was white, middle-aged males with six-figure incomes, college degrees and at least one other vehicle in their households. This is because the majority of EVs just three years ago were luxury-focused, with correspondingly higher price points that made ownership by other demographics more of a challenge despite promised fuel cost savings and government-backed incentives. That was then; this is now. And as the old Virginia Slims ad used to say, “You’ve come a long way, baby.”

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In June of 2022, a Consumer Reports article detailed how several major auto manufacturers are electrifying large segments of their vehicle lineups, with a few announcing plans to go fully electric by 2027. This includes economy and mid-range models that eschew the bells and whistles that make luxury models so pricey. “These more affordable models have the potential to sway a significant percentage of the car-buying public toward… an EV with their efficiency, performance, and lower ownership costs,” said Gabe Shenhar, associate director of Consumer Reports’ Auto Test Center.

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The Fuels Institute speculates that EV sales will constitute as much as 40% of all light-duty vehicle sales as affordability normalizes buyer age and balances gender distribution, among other equitable effects on the marketplace. Yet, as this demand for EVs inevitably increases, the need for a proportionately equitable dispersion of charging infrastructure becomes all the more urgent.

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According to McKinsey & Company, “As the number of EVs on the road increases, annual demand for electricity to charge them would surge from 11 billion kWh now to 230 billion kWh in 2030… Modeling indicates that nearly 30 million chargers would be needed to deliver so much electricity in that year. While most of these chargers would be installed at residences, 1.2 million would [need to] be public chargers.” More importantly, these public chargers must be targeted to drivers of all ages, genders, races, cultures, income levels and geographic segments. As such, EVCS has identified three primary areas necessary to increasing the democratization of charging infrastructure:

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1) Widespread Charging Access

Chargers need to be installed at a large number of communal properties, whether public, semi-public or private. Moreover, geographic allocation must include varying locales, from outlying rural areas to suburban shopping malls to low-income neighborhoods in populous urban centers. That’s why EVCS has focused on installing DCFCs in diverse and scattered areas across the West Coast as well as varying property types, from gyms and grocery stores to municipal lots and educational institutions to multi-unit dwellings and workplaces.

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2) Affordable and Convenient Pricing Models

Gasoline prices continue to be a major pain point for most ICE vehicle owners. A CNBC study in March of 2022 showed that “even with regional surges in the price of electricity, it’s still quite a bit more expensive to fill your gas tank than it is to charge your EV’s battery.” Jeffries analyst David Kelley calculated total vehicle lifetime savings at about $4,700. And while, yes, charging at home is fairly cheap, EVCS has ensured such savings continue in the public square with low network-wide pay-as-you-go fees and flat monthly subscription rates that are simple to understand and don’t fluctuate based on locale or time of day.

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3) Development of New Technologies

Innovation always drives down costs. In just the last couple years, both private and government-backed investments in the EV space have resulted in numerous innovations that have made the industry more efficient and, as a result, accessible, from cloud-based SaaS networking solutions to faster next-gen battery cells to V2G smart grid technology. EVCS has embraced this trend, with our backend network that creates a seamless and uniform user experience – whether you’re in Fresno, California or Skykomish, Washington – and our investments in faster, more effective, more reliable chargers.

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Ensuring EV adoption is viable everywhere and to everyone is crucial to our ultimate goal of creating widespread environmental benefits, including reduced carbon emissions and improved air quality. Efforts at democratizing infrastructure will go a long way toward this goal.

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Further Reading:

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How EVCS is Repairing Reliability Concerns

One of the biggest concerns among EV drivers today is the reliability of public chargers. One recent survey from the Department of Bioengineering at UC Berkeley claims as many as 23% of public chargers in the Bay Area alone are, as Wired sums up, “nonfunctioning at any given time, stymied by broken screens, shoddy credit card or payment systems, network connection failures, or damaged plugs.” And that’s in a locale prioritizing the conversion to electric. Testimony from motorists seems to corroborate these findings. A CEC survey of 1,290 EV drivers found that fully 60% had experienced damaged or inoperable chargers, while almost half needed assistance from customer service. We find this wholly unacceptable and have taken measures to ensure that chargers in the EVCS network rise to the standard of operability our customers expect. Here are a few ways we’re doing that:

Installation of the Month (July 2022): Kenwood Inn & Spa

A key focus for us over the last several years has been the installation of additional chargers at holiday hot spots, tourist destinations, and other key points of interest. Not only will it help dispel long-range travel anxiety among many new EV drivers, but it will also lead to a significant reduction in carbon emissions otherwise generated by gas-guzzlers during peak vacation seasons. Moreover, our egalitarian approach to site selection means we’re just as likely to install a charger at a McDonald’s as we are at a Morton’s since we understand the value in catering to a broad clientele. However, higher net worth individuals continue to drive EV sales in the US (a June 2021 Fuels Institute study specifies middle-aged males with household incomes over $100,000), so catering to venues that offer a luxury experience will encourage even greater participation by this group while serving as a bellwether for lower-income drivers who are attracted to the idea of electric mobility as a symbol of status.

Mexico to Canada EV Road Trip: EVCS Interview

We sat down with EV owner and enthusiast Anthony Williams, a 60-year-old business owner from San Diego, who recently commemorated the 10-year anniversary of his first trans-American road trip in an EV by retracing the same route to see what had changed in the world of EV fast charging, for better or for worse. Below are some of his insights and feedback.

Installation of the Month (June 2022): KPC Anaheim Global Medical Center

“For us, healthcare is not only about caring for our patients, but also about investing in the people who live in our communities.” These are the words emblazoned across the home page of the KPC Anaheim Global Medical Center’s website. Facilities like these are attractive partners for us because, like us, their goal is the betterment of humanity. In fact, just replace “healthcare” with “electric mobility” and “patients” with “planet,” and you have the EVCS mission statement in a nutshell. Allying with kindred spirits creates a natural synergy for us through the sharing of core values like customer service and an improved quality of life. Imagine then our excitement when KPC decided to install four of our newest DC fast chargers on their Anaheim property, giving us the opportunity to continue expanding our network southward.

6 Reasons Why Fast Charging is Critical

EVCS Level 3 chargers are capable of charging an EV battery to 80% capacity within 20 minutes on most vehicles. They are sleek, efficient, convenient, work with any EV, can function in myriad conditions, and are connected by a powerful network with an easy-to-use interface. By all measures, Level 3 charging – or fast charging – is not only an important link in the electric mobility chain as society transitions away from fossil fuels but a critical one to the goal of mass EV adoption.