Posts about locals charging at Superchargers: complain here! :-)

[Uncle Paul]

Moderator note: this thread is for posts about locals charging at Superchargers, an endlessly discussed issue in the California Superchargers forum. Posts made in a thread in the California Superchargers forum about this issue, which is not an issue specific to any one Supercharger, will be moved to this thread. Enjoy the discussion...
—————————————————————————————————————-

Every time I have charged at Qualcomm I have been able to speak to local people that were charging there. This is the reason for the back up.

If only people doing long distance travel were using it, there would be plenty of space.

The lure of free and fast charging is strong for local people.

Unterstand Tesla is adding several more Superchargers around the San Diego area. Should resolve this issue when they open.

Last time there, I met a security guy that was watching over the people waiting in line, to make sure to make it first come first served.

 

[nwdiver]

If they live in San Diego they do not need the SC.

How awesome would it have been if instead of stripping the M3 of 'free' supercharging they had just limited free SC use to >50 miles of where the car spends most of its time parked?

 

[Graffi]

Make that 100 miles and I would vote for it. I know that with the Model S and X we pay for this in the price we paid for the car, but Tesla could give this option to Model 3 drivers to pay a price ($2,000 was used in the past) for unlimited Supercharging beyond this range from their home. Just a thought.

 

[AMPd]

How awesome would it have been if instead of stripping the M3 of 'free' supercharging they had just limited free SC use to >50 miles of where the car spends most of its time parked?

But then what would the people who live in apartments or condos with no way to charge do?
I’m no expert but I think a better solution would be to build more charging stations rather than limiting who can own a Tesla.

 

[Graffi]

Local Supercharging works for those occasions when you need a lot of miles added in a short period. However, as long as you have all night, or all day, then slower charging will work. Electricity is everywhere, we just need to find a way to get it to where the EV is parked. Where there is a will, there is a way. jmho

 

[hill]

problem is, you get stations that close together, and all the freebe freeloaders take their cars there - just a couple blocks away, instead of charging at home .... just because they can. It's a weird phenomena, considering so many spent over $100k ... & yet some love to nickel-&-dime the charging thing - so it continues on when locations are so close. (not wanting to sound judgmental, just an observation). Yet once the various supercharger stations remain over 30 miles apart, it seems to stop a lot of that type of activity - as Tesla drivers' time gets judged as more valuable once you have to take more than 30 minutes round trip just to get there & get back home - just to snag a few bucks of juice.
.

 

[TaoJones]

problem is, you get stations that close together, and all the freebe freeloaders take their cars there - just a couple blocks away, instead of charging at home .... just because they can. It's a weird phenomena, considering so many spent over $100k ... & yet some love to nickel-&-dime the charging thing - so it continues on when locations are so close. (not wanting to sound judgmental, just an observation). Yet once the various supercharger stations remain over 30 miles apart, it seems to stop a lot of that type of activity - as Tesla drivers' time gets judged as more valuable once you have to take more than 30 minutes round trip just to get there & get back home - just to snag a few bucks of juice.
.

How do you tell the difference between owners with garages and those without?

All of LA County's SCs are within 30 miles of each other. I would imagine the same with the OC more or less.

Last time I charged at Clemente (21 stalls), aside from me, every other stall of the 15 or so that were in use were filled with Model Xs.

While I drew no conclusions about that, there is a commonality tweenst most of the SoCal SCs - they're both near major corridors (interstate/regional) as well as local commuting) and significant residential (garaged and non-garaged).

If anything, two truisms have emerged in SoCal since 2014:

1. Put in sites with more pedestals per site - check.
2. Put in more sites - in progress.

A third might be that the non-garaged in some areas (see the Beach Cities) will exceed garaged.
If you are non-garaged and have a 100-mile RT/day commute, you'll hit those SCs 3x/week. Tesla knows this.

Happily, Tesla seems to have changed their approach to the OC and North (SD) County finally. And they know how to manage demand.

I wouldn't own a Bolt or a Leaf were I non-garaged, on the other hand. We've all had a good laugh or 50 at Tesla's vaporforecasting maps over the years, sure - but have a look at the CCS network forecast (see GM et al). Good luck with *that* relative to demand.

Would I prefer that Tesla stop putting SCs at distraction centers, er, shopping centers? Yes. It's not Tesla's job to provide entertainment or food or even restroom options. All of that is appreciated, sure - especially the latter as we age. But ICEing by our own remains a significant challenge, and charging to 100% instead of 80% just because you want to finish dinner is... well, it's a behavior whose impact will be felt at FV, Clemente, and anywhere else adjacent shopping and food.

My $0.02 is to crank those idle fees to $1/minute after 60 minutes lifetime and to $5/minute after 180 minutes lifetime, but that will admittedly only go so far.

So I continue to trust in Tesla's ability to manage demand.

 

[ecarfan]

Moderator note: this thread is for posts about locals charging at Superchargers, an endlessly discussed issue in the California Superchargers forum. Posts made in a thread in the California Superchargers forum about this issue, which is not an issue specific to any one Supercharger, will be moved to this thread. Enjoy the discussion...

 

[Jay Massaro]

Anyone have news on this SC. The SCs at Indio or Banning are a long way to go for locals and tourists in the Palm Springs area.

Locals shouldn’t be using it.

 

[Dugknight]

Locals shouldn’t be using it.

Most of the locals in Palm Springs drive in from far away all the time. Many second homes in the desert.

 

[jnguyen1976]

I live by Westminster SC and it’s always 90% full, mostly with M3. And I don’t think they are all visitors.

 

[bkp_duke]

The Fountain Valley locals are notorious for clogging this one up. They still cannot do the calculation that the value of their time is worth more than the free electricity that they get there.

But you know what they say . . . there is not cure for stupid.

 

[David99]

The Fountain Valley locals are notorious for clogging this one up. They still cannot do the calculation that the value of their time is worth more than the free electricity that they get there.

But you know what they say . . . there is not cure for stupid.

Many people do things they would do anyways at Superchargers. Getting a coffee, getting groceries, answering emails, making phone calls, getting work done (on a laptop or phone), or just get away from everyone for a while. None of these activities are 'stupid'. I see nothing wrong with that.

 

[bkp_duke]

Many people do things they would do anyways at Superchargers. Getting a coffee, getting groceries, answering emails, making phone calls, getting work done (on a laptop or phone), or just get away from everyone for a while. None of these activities are 'stupid'. I see nothing wrong with that.

I have to travel enough to/from LA / SD that I've spent enough time here to identify "frequent offenders". They are easy to spot, someone drives a 2nd car to the SpC with them, and then they leave, come back about an hour later. Same group of about 20-30 people.

Main reason I want a 100D, be able to get from home, to LA, and back without having to stop and deal with these people.

 

[smilepak]

I live by Westminster SC and it’s always 90% full, mostly with M3. And I don’t think they are all visitors.

If something is offered for free, there will always be those to take advantage of the situation. I only use SC less than 5% of the time a year. Usually when I am low on energy and need to travel long distance. Otherwise, I go home to charge. At least Tesla are charging for SC now, imagine if they didn’t still.

I was here yesterday. It was almost full. 6 of them were X, many M3.

Convenient place with Target next to it for a quick pickup of home items

 

[AMPd]

If something is offered for free, there will always be those to take advantage of the situation. I only use SC less than 5% of the time a year. Usually when I am low on energy and need to travel long distance. Otherwise, I go home to charge. At least Tesla are charging for SC now, imagine if they didn’t still.

I was here yesterday. It was almost full. 6 of them were X, many M3.

Convenient place with Target next to it for a quick pickup of home items

Arent most M3 owners paying for supercharging? Seems like many of the people charging have no other option if they choose the more expensive charging option.

 

[smilepak]

Arent most M3 owners paying for supercharging? Seems like many of the people charging have no other option if they choose the more expensive charging option.

Still cheaper than charging at home. Edison during peak hours can go as high as 41 cents kw.

 

[OCR1]

The Fountain Valley locals are notorious for clogging this one up. They still cannot do the calculation that the value of their time is worth more than the free electricity that they get there.

But you know what they say . . . there is not cure for stupid.

Tell Costco to stop giving away free food samples. That’s what most of those people are doing while waiting for their cars to charge.

 

[AMPd]

Still cheaper than charging at home. Edison during peak hours can go as high as 41 cents kw.

You can’t say it’s cheaper and then give me the highest rate. What about off peak?

 

[MorrisonHiker]

But then what would the people who live in apartments or condos with no way to charge do?

They would still be able to charge, it just wouldn't be free.