Supercharger in Eastern Victoria

[Burnt Toast]

With Melbourne to Brisbane route largely complete and the Adelaide route underway, a big gap in the supercharging infrastructure is Eastern Victoria. Without one in say Sale, access to that part of the state is extremely limited. One in Bright and at the Base of Mt Buller would be great too.

 

[VOTS01]

One in Phillip Island (or thereabouts) would be appreciated. Whilst it is a relatively short distance to Melbourne (~2 hours) - if you plan on driving the island all day it does cut it fine if you want to head back in the same day.

Similarly for Lorne (I realise this is in the west though).

There are destination chargers in both spots but more suitable for overnight stays.

 

[srwx]

Lorne is already on the list for 2017 superchargers, but I definitely would love to see some in the east of Victoria. That'd make day trips to Wilson Prom, Lakes Entrance or Mallacoota more feasible (although they are the kinds of destinations I'd generally spend a couple of days at )

 

[moemoke]

Sale would be a good option but what about Bairnsdale, a but further East and would allow travel to Mt Hotham possibly without
charging on the mountain

 

[Burnt Toast]

Sale would be a good option but what about Bairnsdale, a but further East and would allow travel to Mt Hotham possibly without
charging on the mountain

Not many people drive to Mt Hotham that way. And you'd still need to charge at the mountain as the car would lose all its range sitting in the snow.

 

[Chuq]

Going by existing SC locations, the Moe/Morwell/Traralgon region is an ideal location so far as distance between superchargers go. (~150km) and is on the main highway. Bairnsdale an obvious second hop.

Of course they could just as easily select anywhere Warragul-Sale-Orbost. The Warragul location could even be skipped, it's only 211 km from Melbourne to Sale, and then they could backfill later on with a site in Dandenong, Pakenham or Warragul. etc. Dandenong is pretty close to the city but it would be a good top up location for not only Gippsland drivers but also Mornington Peninsula and Phillip Island.

Also have to consider what locations are viable on the other end (NSW South Coast). If there is a big gap with no reasonable services that would limit all the other sites.

 

[Burnt Toast]

Going by existing SC locations, the Moe/Morwell/Traralgon region is an ideal location so far as distance between superchargers go. (~150km) and is on the main highway. Bairnsdale an obvious second hop.

Of course they could just as easily select anywhere Warragul-Sale-Orbost. The Warragul location could even be skipped, it's only 211 km from Melbourne to Sale, and then they could backfill later on with a site in Dandenong, Pakenham or Warragul. etc. Dandenong is pretty close to the city but it would be a good top up location for not only Gippsland drivers but also Mornington Peninsula and Phillip Island.

Also have to consider what locations are viable on the other end (NSW South Coast). If there is a big gap with no reasonable services that would limit all the other sites.

It might be a bit of a problem in Dandenong if that Apex thugs figure out that Tesla's are better than Audis. I wouldn't use a supercharger there.

 

[bradjc]

I'd put a vote in for Traralgon which is a bigger city but I think more likely it would be Sale. Sale opens up the Gippsland lakes, Bairnsdale and Lakes Entrance would then become a comfortable drive, some great spots out that way. Plus Sale is a better stretch to a Supercharger from Richmond / Melb at 211kms away (Traralgon only 158kms). I think Eastern Vic might be low on the list though with 3 new Superchargers scheduled already for 2017 (Ballarat, Horsham, Lorne) so I bet they'll give some other states some love next.

 

[Chuq]

I think the deciding factor on that route is going to be the gap near the NSW/Vic border. There isn't a lot between Orbost and Eden, which at a 181 km gap between them, kind of locks those two locations in, so heading back the other way Sale is the most likely option.

I don't think you need to worry about apportioning chargers to states. Wodonga doesn't really benefit Victorians over New South Welshmen any more than Albury would have. Last years rollout was very beneficial to Queenslanders despite the fact none of them were actually in Queensland!

I think the most likely locations for next year will be north of Brisbane; south of Sydney and east of Melbourne.

 

[ixat]

I doubt there will be a supercharger in Eastern Melbourne. If there was, Baxter might be an okay location, on the way down the Mornington and not too much of a detour from the South Gippsland Hwy (Cranbourne) for those heading to Phillip Island and Wilson's Promontory. But to get that built it'd require everyone from Rosebud to Portsea to be driving Teslas.


Awhile ago (when ~250km was thought to be the normal spacing) I thought Sale and Cann River would be good locations and allow travel to Cooma, but those are a little on the long side for each leg given the current spacing for Model 3s.

Traralgon or Rosedale would be ideal locations. Rosedale is the ideal distance at 187km but Traralgon is the better place as it allows a turnoff towards Wallhalla, Glenmaggie or Mt Baw Baw (via the longer/back way). And being a bit of a larger town there are more options for 24 hour locations with facilities.

Bairnsdale at only 119km away is too close in this case, so it could be an infill route in 5-10 years if it is required.

210km from Traralgon is Orbost, build a supercharger next to the Snowy River and power it with credits from the Hydro scheme. A nice little sign at the location saying "These superchargers are powered by the Snowy River you see before you and the Sun above"

Orbost to Cooma is 250km so that isn't too bad for a long distance journey while the coastal route, Orbost to Eden is right on the money at 184km. And then Eden - Cooma is 150km, Eden to Batemans Bay is 198km and Batemans Bay to Canberra or Goulburn is 150km.

 

[moemoke]

How does Orbost to Cooma go with the elevation change, would it be a struggle? would be a good spot though,
and one in Traralgon would pretty much complete Eastern Victoria.