Got PHEV'd today :-(

[ads75]

As I write this, I have no EV experience, and am waiting on something to eventually come in.

Keep in mind with the PHEVs taking the charging spots, they have as much right to them as a BEV (at least while charging). I may not like that someone is there when I want it, but we all buy what we want, with both advantages and disadvantages. We all know electrics aren't as convenient as gas for filling up. One guy I work with had a VW eGolf, unfortunately he crashed tested it into a utility pole on the way home one morning, the pole won (he was fine, his car didn't make it). He wanted another BEV, but given the car market today, he had to settle for a Ford Escape PHEV. He charges at home, drives to work and charges at work, his commute one way is about the same as the battery range (about 25-30 miles each way). I think he said he's been through 2-3 tanks of gas in the last year. Once I get a Rivian, should I have more of a right to the charger than him? What about another guy that has a Volt, do I have the right to fully charge (ok 80%) a Rivian before letting him charge because my choice is less efficient? If you want to argue PHEV vs BEV, you can also argue efficiencies like Hummer vs Rivian vs Tesla vs everything else. As others have said, potential solutions include charging for energy, charging for time.

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[RVXIAN]

a lot of good points charging should be available to those free but should impose time limits with high idle fees. Maybe 3 hours free or 80% charge with a $1 per min after. With in that frame people who are done will quickly move their car. Those who really need a charge will queue up. I also think a reservation system through an app would be effective for high use areas. PHEV’s should be limited to shorter times as they have the luxury of topping off at a local gas station.

 

[Smithery]

Anyone else ever run into this? Is this going to be a common problem?

For *FREE* @work charging, yes; It's going to be a common problem.
Especially with gas prices the way they are.

I work at a big company with tons and tons of chargers (but also tons and tons of BEVs and PHEVs) and have been charging a car at work since ~2013.

Every few months there's a new wave of "I have a BEV, doe these PHEV people really NEED to hog a charger?" emails, followed by extension "discussion" from both sides.

Some buildings that are more impacted than others have waitlist charging which relieves things a bit.
My wife's company charges a very small fee - certainly way less than the cost of electricity, but just enough to remove the "free" label. They also tend to not have this problem.

You could advocate for either of those solutions.

 

[Dark-Fx]

If you want to argue PHEV vs BEV, you can also argue efficiencies like Hummer vs Rivian vs Tesla vs everything else.

I'm happy to. We didn't charge somewhere that had two chargers. One was busted, another had a Tesla already charging there. They'd benefit significantly from the L2 vs the Hummer so "it is what it is". Always expect that you won't be able to charge if the L2 is public. Be happy if you can, but depending on it is going to lead to heartache even more than DCFC.

 

[NY_Rob]

Here's how they solved the problem of petty squatting issues at the free L2 EVSE near my work... remove the station permanently and place an orange road cone over the base mount. No more squatting complaints from EV drivers.

Our local community college did the same.. they removed all 4 stations for "relocation".. yeah, it turns out they relocated them.. to the dumpster. They have no public charging at all now. No more complaints about non-working stations.

I wonder if free public charging might have seen it's peak and may be on the decline because stations are now being used so issues arise and it's just not worth the hassle for the station owners.

 

[ads75]

I'm happy to. We didn't charge somewhere that had two chargers. One was busted, another had a Tesla already charging there. They'd benefit significantly from the L2 vs the Hummer so "it is what it is". Always expect that you won't be able to charge if the L2 is public. Be happy if you can, but depending on it is going to lead to heartache even more than DCFC.

I am doing a trip in the fall that is about 260-280 miles each way. Turning Stone Hotel/Casino in NY has L2 chargers, at least in some photos, no idea how many, or if they work. I am already planning on relying on DCFC there and back, I am figuring one stop each way, if I have a BEV by then (strongest contender is Debut Edition Cadillac Lyriq with no current delivery estimate, my Rivian window is Dec 2022/Jan 2023, which I may delay for a max pack if I do get the Lyriq.)

 

[ERguy]

I don't see any problem with a PHEV using a public charger.

I do think it's frustrating any time somebody parks at a charger and is not actively charging.

If a PHEV is occupying a space with a charger but not using the charger to charge, I find it equally as frustrating as when a BEV occupies a space with a charger while not actively charging.

 

[Mike TDM]

Only person I know for sure I pissed off with my Volt was a Prius prime driver that I beat to the spot by about 30 seconds.

Good to find another Volt owner on the forum!

 

[dduffey]

I think charging based on time and not kwh would help resolve this as well for DCFC.

Then those that "hog" a spot end up paying more per kwh the longer they stay. It would encourage people to move when they have enough to complete their trip and use when they need it the most and when they get the fastest charge.

That allows for reasonable use that is cost efficient and if you really need the extra charge then you still have the option to stay longer.

 

[atebit]

When the large campus where I used to work first deployed EVSEs, resource hogging quickly became an issue and ended up being a hot topic during a subsequent “town hall” meeting.

The Facilities Department then took the following steps:
- Created a “portal” on the campus website where employees could (optionally) register their EV vehicles.
- Created email aliases for each building cluster for EV owners to communicate with each other & Facilities (“Hey this is Joe, my car’s done charging, going to move my car if anyone needs a charge” or “The blue Model 3 at Building 5 EVSE Stall 2 is done charging could you please move it?”
- Designated a Facilities “Charging Czar” to handle escalations. Theoretically, all employees that park in the lots were supposed to provide details to Security about their cars (Year, Make, Model, License Plate, etc.), so the Czar could escalate repeat offenders that weren’t in the voluntary EV list to Security to contact the owner
or ticket them at their discretion.

Net-net within a few months, the drama largely calmed down and people started cooperating. Finally, as part of the next wave of EVSE installs, Facilities updated all the “dumb” stations with ones that were part of a charging network (I forget which one). The stations were still free to use, but you had to open an account and then either use an NFC-enabled card or your phone app to initiate charging. This made the Czar’s “enforcer” role much more efficient & effective.

Skeletor, take us home…

 

[ajdelange]

Here's how they solved the problem of petty squatting issues at the free L2 EVSE near my work... remove the station permanently and place an orange road cone over the base mount. No more squatting complaints from EV drivers.

In today's society of "entitled" citizenry I fear that this is the only solution (orange cone optional). L2 is pretty useless anywhere except at home anyway - especially with vehicles like the Rivian/CT/Hummer... that use 400+ Wh/mi.

 

[Count Orlok]

I would think this was a missed opportunity for you to test the dead-weight towing capacity of your Rivian. I'd click a utube video of you pulling the bolt away with a chain.

 

[SASSquatch]

Here's how they solved the problem of petty squatting issues at the free L2 EVSE near my work... remove the station permanently and place an orange road cone over the base mount. No more squatting complaints from EV drivers.

Our local community college did the same.. they removed all 4 stations for "relocation".. yeah, it turns out they relocated them.. to the dumpster. They have no public charging at all now. No more complaints about non-working stations.

I wonder if free public charging might have seen it's peak and may be on the decline because stations are now being used so issues arise and it's just not worth the hassle for the station owners.

"Free chargers" that are open to the public I think have seen their peak. Initially, it was a way to attract people to their business, especially if the demographic of customer matched with the demographic of the typical EV owner.

But as EV ownership starts to increase, attracting a larger number of EVs, the model breaks down.

I personally prefer having a paid system because it ensures that there is a service model in place and detracts from people who want to abuse the system and leave their car parked there for 8 or 10 hours to charge up fully instead of topping off FOR CUSTOMERS which is what these chargers (at least for businesses) are meant for.

The other thing we need is REAL enforcement. There has to be a penalty for ICE'ing spaces other than passive aggressive notes or stares.

EV charging spots should be for active charging, with maximum charging times that charge you an arm and a leg if you exceed your limit - and they should be treated like a metered/Handicap spot. If you go outside of the rules, you will be ticketed or towed.

For good measure, "ICEholes" should have a nasty hard to remove sticker reminding the offender of their offense placed right in their line of sight on the windshield or somewhere visible so that it effectively shames them...

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