“Range anxiety” targeted in Oklahoma’s building of EV charging network

 

 

Charging, not range, is becoming a top concern for electric vehicle drivers.

The Biden administration’s infrastructure agenda includes $5 billion to install electric vehicle chargers on highways, but the initiative is dragging.

State agencies that typically focus on pavement have had to cope with the complexity of providing power, and have learned that electric utilities move slowly and key pieces of equipment are in short supply.

In Oklahoma, the state Department of Transportation earlier this year announced the first phase of expanding electric vehicle infrastructure.

The Oklahoma Transportation Commission approved more than $8 million in federal funds awarded to three private partners to build 13 charging stations along Oklahoma interstate highways.

The stations will be within 50 miles of pre-existing or planned sites in designated corridors, within 1-mile driving distance of an exit, equipped with at least four charging ports capable of simultaneous 150kW or higher charging, accessible 24/7/365, and have broadband or cellular capability. Once installed, the 13 stations will complete the EV charging corridors on I-35, I-40 and I-44 in Oklahoma.

“Range anxiety is a real concern for electric vehicle owners here in Oklahoma and nationwide,” said ODOT Multi-Modal Division Engineer Jared Schwennesen. “We believe this will be a major step toward cutting down on that anxiety and providing a reliable charging network across Oklahoma.”

The contracts were awarded to Love’s Travel Stops, Francis Energy LLC, and Tesla Inc., who will provide a combined $7 million in private funding match to build the stations. Through this public-private partnership, the private partners will design, build, operate and maintain the charging stations.

The charging stations are expected to be opened in 2025.

To date, the program funded by the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law has installed just 19 charging stations in nine states, according to the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation, which serves as the program’s technical resource.

From all funding sources, public and private, there are now more than 72,000 stations. However, most of them are slower chargers that fill a battery overnight and cost much less to build than fast chargers cost.

The Biden administration is using tax credits, regulations, and federal investments to shift drivers toward electric vehicles. But motorists will make the switch only if they are confident they can find reliable charging when and where they need it.

Over the past four years, the number of public charging ports across the U.S. has doubled. As of August 2024 the nation had 192,000 publicly available charging ports and was adding approximately 1,000 public chargers weekly.

Charging technology is improving, too. Speeds are now reaching up to 350 kilowatts – fast enough to charge a standard electric car in less than 10 minutes. The industry has also begun to shift to a standard called ISO 15118, which governs the interface between EVs and the power grid.

This standard enables a plug-and-charge system: Just plug in the charger and you’re done, without contending with apps or multiple payment systems. Many existing chargers can be retrofitted to it, rather than needing to install totally new chargers.

Studies point to the need for more robust maintenance and monitoring systems across charging networks. Federal guidelines require chargers to have an average annual “uptime,” or functional time, greater than 97%, but this metric is not always clear-cut. While many charging-point operators report high uptime percentages, their figures often exclude factors such as slow charging speeds or incomplete charges that degrade users’ experience.

Many drivers complain about throttling – chargers that dispense electricity at less than the maximum rate the car is capable of accepting, so the car charges more slowly than expected. Sometimes this is normal: Cars will charge more slowly as their battery gets closer to full in order to avoid damaging the battery. Other factors can include weather conditions and the number of other vehicles simultaneously using the charging station.

Drivers’ issues with chargers involve more than just uptime. Technical barriers, such as payment processing and vehicle-charger communication, sometimes can prevent a charge from starting or completing.

Other obstacles are more local, such as long lines at charging stations and chargers that are blocked by parked cars, snowbanks or other obstacles. Finding vehicles with internal combustion engines parked in EV charger spots is common enough that it has a name: getting ICEd. There’s a clear need for more comprehensive solutions to help the charging experience keep pace with demand for EVs.