Faster, More Powerful EV Charging Means Nothing Without Reliability – EQ Mag
Current legacy chargers are not equipped with the right technology to meet uptime demands that both consumers, and now regulators, expect.
When the automobile was first introduced, drivers were faced with a new fear—range anxiety. Gas stations were non-existent and the best place to find fuel was at pharmacies, which sold containers of gas as a side business. Long-distance trips had to be carefully planned to ensure fuel was available when needed.
A little over 100 years later and electric vehicle (EV) owners are facing a similar issue. This new range anxiety is two-fold—first, by a potential lack of available EV charging stations and second, by the reliability of those stations to dispense essential “fuel” on demand. Reliability is a must-have but current legacy chargers are not equipped with the right technology to meet uptime demands that both consumers, and now regulators, expect.
Multifamily is more susceptible to home-charging issues
A recent study by the University of California-Berkeley concerning DCFC chargers showed they averaged 75 percent uptime, which translates to 125,000 non-functioning chargers in a pool of 500,000 at any given time. A handful of these chargers were unusable due to maintenance issues or poor design, such as charging cables incapable of reaching any vehicle at all. However, one of the most serious issues facing charging stations is a lack of connectivity, which is central to essential functions such as user authentication and payment processing, for example, that allow the charger to dispense energy.
Source: PTI
