Range anxiety? These electric vehicle chargers will come to you
The US has about 50,000 public charging stations for electric vehicles, compared to an estimated 145,000 retail locations to purchase fuel for a gas-powered car. That's the prime source of the dreaded charging anxiety — the worry that you could run out of power in the middle of a trip.
Not only are current and would-be EV drivers worried about whether they can find charging, they're also concerned charging infrastructure might not work. More than 20% of EV drivers in the US said they have pulled up to a charging station and been unable to charge their vehicle due to equipment malfunction, according to a study from J.D Power, a data analytics company.
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A slew of startups are attempting to solve this problem by developing mobile chargers, from clunky metal boxes on wheels to sleek robots ready to prowl parking lots. While startups are seeing an initial wave of interest from vehicle fleets — which often park where charging infrastructure is unavailable — the technology may become more widespread for everyday drivers in the future.
The charging network currently being built out across the US “is the backbone” for drivers ”to feel confident that they can use an electric vehicle to go long distances,” said Alan Jenn, assistant professor at the Institute of Transportation Studies at the University of California, Davis. “Mobile chargers offer a slightly different, slightly nuanced sort of charging experience, and these things are going to find a home somewhere.”
EV manufacturer Lightning eMotors has developed a mobile charger called Lightning Mobile, which weighs a whopping 9,900 pounds (4,500 kilograms) and costs more than $300,000. Not exactly what one might consider “portable,” the unit
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