BMW and VW are teaming up to build around 100 charging stations for electric cars which shall be positioned along the busy and popularly traveled roads found on the East and West Coasts. The project will also be participated by ChargePoint, the biggest charging network for electric vehicles. The company already has over 20,000 existing charging spots in North America. Both existing and upcoming charging spots will be made accessible to anyone who has a ChargePoint or ChargeNow Card. The other option is by using the ChargePoint mobile app.
The project has already started on the West Coast and has its first location founded in San Diego County. Under the new network of charging stations, some of them will be owned independently and will thus incur charges for the consumed electricity. Other stations will be consortium-owned and will be dispensing free electricity.
Funding will be shared by all the three key players with the large portion to be handled by the two car makers.
"The express charging corridors are another important step in the development of the U.S. e-mobility infrastructure that makes longer distance travel a real option for consumers, particularly along the most heavily trafficked portions of both coasts," said Robert Healey, Head of EV Infrastructure at BMW of North America.
The stations will be designed with 50-kW fast chargers which will allow most EVs to become 80 percent charged in 30 minutes. There are also some 24-kW Level 2 stations that consumers can opt for if they don't mind charging up longer than half an hour.
"With strategically-placed stations where drivers need them, these express charging corridors will give EV drivers the freedom to go farther and have an EV as their only car without limitation," said Pasquale Romano, ChargePoint CEO.
The aim of the project is to address the hurdle in the adoption of electric cars which are known to have relatively short ranges. This poses a problem when driving on longer trips where charging can become extremely difficult.
In addition to allowing longer-distance driving, the new network of stations could also be useful when driving shorter distances and around-town driving. It would also reduce bad behavior at charging stations which are said to be overtaxed.
"In California, it's not uncommon to pull up at a bank of chargers and find them all occupied," said Kevin Wood, program manager at the Center for Sustainable Energy. "When you're out on the road and you need a charge, it's frustrating if someone else is blocking the charger - especially in the case of a car that has finished charging but someone has left the car there because it's a convenient parking spot."
