Has anybody noticed availability improvements at SCs?

[mspohr]

Now that the policy to charge for parking idle time as SCs has been announced and people are receiving notices that they will be charged for idle time, I was wondering if anyone has noticed any improvements in availability SCs... particularly at SC sites which have been congested in the past.
(The pros/cons/alternatives to the $0.40 fee are being beat to death in this thread Improving Supercharger Availability $0.40 idle fee
so please use this poll thread to report any observations you may have after visiting congested SC sites and use the other thread for comments on the policy.)
I've set this poll up to allow you to change your vote so if you vote now and later notice something different, you should be able to change your vote. I expect that results may change over time.

 

[AudubonB]

Can I make a snarky first answer here by noting that the lines now are just as long as they always have been at every single SpC in Alaska? It has't made our waits any shorter at all.

 

[mspohr]

Can I make a snarky first answer here by noting that the lines now are just as long as they always have been at every single SpC in Alaska? It has't made our waits any shorter at all.

We're all very happy that you don't have a wait. Even living in California, I have never had a wait. However, there are a few sites which are congested and this poll is aimed at people who use those sites.

 

[4SUPER9]

So far, no votes. Let's see what people think on the other forums related to busy superchargers. I posted a link to this poll on several So Cal threads.

 

[mspohr]

So far, no votes. Let's see what people think on the other forums related to busy superchargers. I posted a link to this poll on several So Cal threads.

Interesting. This may be a problem limited to this forum and not exist in the real world. Just whingers.

 

[TexasEV]

We're all very happy that you don't have a wait. Even living in California, I have never had a wait. However, there are a few sites which are congested and this poll is aimed at people who use those sites.

I think you missed the fact that Alaska doesn't have any superchargers.

 

[Reekdog]

Burbank SC is less crowded now that the Buena Park SC location came online. I also heard that there will be additional superchargers in the Burbank Mall. Let's keep our fingers crossed!

 

[spentan]

I will report on this as I use more superchargers, but since the Idle Fee, I've only been to 2 superchargers, San Diego CA at 3am, (which was empty, whereas it used to have a lot of parked cars overnight (not charging), and San Juan Capistrano CA which usually has a line, but had a free spot when I showed up there on Tuesday at 4:30pm.

So I think the Idle Fee is working. That and the availability of Buena Park, Santa Ana for I-5 drivers, is really good imho for SoCal. All we need is a North County San Diego SpC, and one around Riverside or Redlands for when I go to Big Bear.

Otherwise I think I'm good

 

[4SUPER9]

I will report on this as I use more superchargers, but since the Idle Fee, I've only been to 2 superchargers, San Diego CA at 3am, (which was empty, whereas it used to have a lot of parked cars overnight (not charging), and San Juan Capistrano CA which usually has a line, but had a free spot when I showed up there on Tuesday at 4:30pm.

A free spot at SJC? What a rare find! That, and overnighters are gone from SD. Good news!

 

[mspohr]

The OP labeled his comment snark and I took it in that spirit.

I think you missed the fact that Alaska doesn't have any superchargers.

 

[abasile]

All we need is a North County San Diego SpC, and one around Riverside or Redlands for when I go to Big Bear.

Coming from San Diego, the Temecula SC works great for driving to Big Bear. Temecula was basically deserted when we last charged there on a weekday evening. The only downside is that, from Temecula, I'd probably want to charge to somewhere around 200 rated miles to arrive in Big Bear with a semi-decent margin and be able to drive around a bit. Or, if one won't have access to charging during the visit or elsewhere on the way home, then a full charge (and > 60 kWh battery) would be in order. That's assuming one uses CA-330 and CA-18. I'm not sure how much more charge taking CA-38 would require.

That said, it certainly wouldn't bother me if Tesla decided to install SCs by the base of the mountain, in Redlands or Highland.

Also, if you ever find yourself short of charge en route to Big Bear, check with PlugShare. I hear there's a guy with a Model S and a LEAF who is willing to let strangers plug in at 30A while they eat at a restaurant down the street or visit the National Forest up the street...

 

[FlatSix911]

Tesla is pushing a new software update: now listing amenities around Supercharger and adding profiles to key fobs

 

[mspohr]

Tesla is pushing a new software update: now listing amenities around Supercharger and adding profiles to key fobs

It would be most useful if they listed availability.

 

[4SUPER9]

It would be most useful if they listed availability.

Like I said, it should be here with 8.1. This update is still 8.0

 

[jerry33]

I've yet to see a congested SC.

 

[dmode]

I only had to wait for 2 mins at the San Mateo SC yesterday in peak rush hour. Yes, the infamous San Mateo SC. Can't tell whether this was due to policy change or just great luck

 

[WARP 10]

I will report on this as I use more superchargers, but since the Idle Fee, I've only been to 2 superchargers, San Diego CA at 3am, (which was empty, whereas it used to have a lot of parked cars overnight (not charging), and San Juan Capistrano CA which usually has a line, but had a free spot when I showed up there on Tuesday at 4:30pm.

So I think the Idle Fee is working. That and the availability of Buena Park, Santa Ana for I-5 drivers, is really good imho for SoCal. All we need is a North County San Diego SpC, and one around Riverside or Redlands for when I go to Big Bear.

Otherwise I think I'm good

San Diego SpC today, around noon, was full as usual (I got the last spot), and there were at least a couple of cars waiting for the 30-40 minutes I was there. Was there last week and almost all chargers were running too slow to use or were down completely. Mothership verified they were having serious problems, so maybe the congestion today was spillover. I noticed the charge rate was all over the map, ranging from 24-80kW/h. Also noticed there were not the 2-3 cars parked there unattended for the whole time I was there, as has been the case in the past. So I think the jury is still out.

 

[AnxietyRanger]

Record high wait times at Superchargers (after idle charge implementation)?

The holidays are hard on Tesla’s Superchargers, long lines reported, Barstow broken again [Updated]

 

[Shock-On-T]

It will be difficult to judge the effectiveness of the changes, because of the holidays.

 

[4SUPER9]

Resurrecting this old poll. Now that SC stall availability is visible on our navs, I was pleasantly surprised to see several stalls available at both FV and SJC yesterday evening (Saturday), around 5-6pm. To see any availability at either of these sites during daylight hours is impressive. I have even seen some availability at Burbank. Of course, this depends on the accuracy of the Nav, but still, I like it.