A vote of “no confidence” for EV charging companies as automakers pave their own road

OPINION – Automaker’s decision to build their own electric vehicle charging network shows it is time for more accountability of state grant programs.

A recent announcement by seven large car manufacturers shows a lack of confidence in the current state of electric vehicle (EV) charging in California. The major car manufacturers, including General Motors, Honda, Mercedes, and Hyundai, are teaming up with their competitors to develop what these companies call a “reliable” charging system, even mentioning the word “reliable” six times in their statement. California is the “lab” for so many programs designed to fight climate change with other states and countries eagerly watching, ready to replicate our work. This is why the state needs to hit the reset button and ensure our EV charging networks are serving both our climate goals and the expectations of California drivers.

While California proudly leads the nation in its investments and adoption of EVs, widespread consumer buy-in is the only way the state will reach its 2035 zero-emission vehicle goals. But with early adopters expressing continuous frustration with broken and unusable public chargers, breaking through to the general consumer will be difficult. In fact, we may be losing ground, with one EV driver so fed up with the lack of charger reliability that they wrote a recent Op-Ed in the L.A. Times titled “I’m ready to trade in my electric car.”

As an “early adopter” myself, I have been part of the experiment to test out how charging infrastructure is performing. I can tell you both as an EV driver and legislator that I am extremely disappointed in what I have found.  My attempt to use chargers in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties has shown me that public chargers are hard to find, require multiple different apps to use, and are frequently broken when I arrive – even when a company’s own app says otherwise. And this experience is not unique to LA and Ventura Counties. A recent Cornell study found that nearly 25% of EV chargers were unusable in the Bay Area. As a legislator, it is clear to me that our EV charging programs are as broken as the charger at the Burbank airport where I park weekly.

A recent announcement by seven large car manufacturers shows a lack of confidence in the current state of electric vehicle (EV) charging in California.

We have invested $1.7 billion as a state to build a public charger network, but often feels like we invested in a series of similar modern art sculptures in grocery store parking lots. However, it doesn’t have to be this way. Just ask any Tesla driver. Tesla has built its own charging network throughout the state and country, which provides its drivers a seamless charging experience. I get to experience the difference when I borrow my husband’s Model 3.  The ease of finding and charging within this private network gives me hope that there is a path forward for public charging.

My experiences, and those of thousands of Californians, demonstrate that the state needs more oversight and more accountability of the charging industry and the programs that subsidize public EV charging.  If you look at some of the largest EV charging companies, it’s clear that their motivation is rarely focused on reliability. Instead, these private companies have spent millions in lobbying legislators over the past decade to prevent accountability, with several EV charging companies making significantly more money from installing chargers than they do from keeping them up and running.

The state can and must do a better job of ensuring these companies are keeping their charging stations operational and letting Californians know they are available.  We need to be able to assure drivers that it will be easy to find a station and that it will be working when they arrive.  I know that Californian’s are up for meeting our ZEV goals and now it is time to ensure charging companies are as well.

Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin represents California’s 42nd Assembly District