EV Infrastructure in Australia
EV infrastructure is one of the key barriers often cited by potential EV drivers or those looking to switch to their first electric car. EV infrastructure refers to the availability of EV charging stations (EVSE) found in easy to access public areas including workplaces, car parks, council areas and along major highways and arterial roadways. Without adequate EV infrastructure many EV drivers may fear that they may possibly run out of battery range, otherwise known as range anxiety.
The reality is that EV infrastructure is more widespread than first expected, especially when EV drivers are unaware of what to keep an eye out for.
Lets check out the EV infrastructure in Australia’s three largest Cities.
EV Infrastructure in Sydney – 106 Charging Locations
So as you can see there is a large abundance of EV charging infrastructure already in place, with these numbers increasing by the month as more and more shops, councils and business’s appreciate the shift towards electric vehicles and how the investment into EV infrastructure can positively impact on the attractiveness of a destination.
The most important thing to understand with regards to EV infrastructure is that unlike in a normal car, you are rarely going to have to charge from empty to full. Your electric vehicle is usually plugged in and fully charged over night, with further tops ups done whilst at work, or out and about visiting a shopping centre or restaurant. Many EV drivers will report that they are only utilising EV infrastructure once or twice a week, and even then it is simple opportunistic charging to keep the battery topped up. Given most drivers in our capital cities would drive less than 100km a day, you can see why EV infrastructure dependency in our capital cities does not exist.
A key consideration for EV infrastructure is along our major highways where longer distance driving will be taking place, testing the range of the electric vehicles on the market. This is where DC Fast charging EV infrastructure, such as the Tesla Super Charging Network, is critical to provide 80% battery top up in around 20-30 mins of time. As the uptake of electric vehicles in Australia increases over the coming years, this form of EV infrastructure will grow and develop to match demand.