Blog Tesla Announces Supercharger Push in Urban Areas

Tesla announced today a new Supercharger station design that aims to better accommodate owners in urban areas.

According to a Tesla blog post:

Superchargers in urban areas have a new post design that occupies less space and is easier to install, making them ideal for dense, highly populated areas. To increase efficiency and support a high volume of cars, these Superchargers have a new architecture that delivers a rapid 72 kilowatts of dedicated power to each car. This means charging speeds are unaffected by Tesla vehicles plugging into adjacent Superchargers, and results in consistent charging times around 45 to 50 minutes for most drivers.

Tesla says the urban Supercharger stations will be installed in convenient locations like supermarkets, shopping centers and downtown districts “so it’s easy for customers to charge their car in the time it takes to grocery shop or run errands.”

Chicago and Boston will receive the first of the urban Superchargers.

 

[Missile Toad]

Article says:

...we are expanding our Supercharger network into city centers, starting with downtown Chicago and Boston
They also have the same pricing as our existing Superchargers, which is far cheaper than the cost of gasoline.
...charging speeds are unaffected by Tesla vehicles plugging into adjacent Superchargers, and results in consistent charging times around 45 to 50 minutes for most drivers.​

Current locations are:

8 superchargers
800 Boylston Street
Boston, MA 02199

10 superchargers
225 North Columbus Drive
Chicago, IL 60601-7910​

I'm not entirely sure I like calling these Superchargers. If I were to 'freshen up' the naming, I'd try one of these:

1. urban charger
2. 60% chargers (since 72kW is 60% of 120kW)
3. fast chargers
4. ICE magnets

Having said that, as long as they are called 'superchargers', presumably, for those who have purchased the Supercharger Option (or free-for-life), presumably, there remains no fee?

These new chargers would fit in as follows:

• Supercharger: 120-135 kW when unpaired with empty battery
• ____: up to 72kW, regardless of pairing (while battery below ~50%)
• Wall Connector (or Destination chargers): 8 - 19 kW

 

[Bebop]

Nice. I hope to see a push for these in Major Malls and Shopping Centers in the Chicago Suburbs.

 

[thx1139]

So how fast would these chargers charge a Tesla from empty to full. I know many different battery sizes. Just looking for ballpark. The 72kW information is confusing me.

 

[scaesare]

1) I wonder if there's any chance the actual chargers themselves live within the pedestals themselves. Assuming they use a stack of the new 72A chargers also used in cars, that would imply needing 4-ish of them. They are slimmer, however they are a "solid" cabinet. The Tesla post implies they aren't shared, and hence don't need a single back-end cabinet. It would also seem to ease installation somewhat. But I don't see any cooling provision.. so probably not.

2) If they aren't shared, I wonder why that stall unit in Tesla's blog post is marked "4B". I'd bet it's a pic from a new unit they had/are considering for regular superchargers as well...

 

[scaesare]

I'm not entirely sure I like calling these Superchargers. If I were to 'freshen up' the naming, I'd try one of these:

1. urban charger
2. 60% chargers (since 72kW is 60% of 120kW)
3. fast chargers
4. ICE magnets

I always liked the suggestion I saw here once some time back: "Metrochargers"

 

[dmode]

Strange that they decided to start with Chicago and Boston, when all initial Model 3s are delivered in CA. And LA and Bay Area superchargers are already full even without Model 3s

 

[Mkorpal]

Strange that they decided to start with Chicago and Boston, when all initial Model 3s are delivered in CA. And LA and Bay Area superchargers are already full even without Model 3s

If they really did simplify the process, it probably won't be long until they show up in Cali.

 

[JeffK]

So how fast would these chargers charge a Tesla from empty to full. I know many different battery sizes. Just looking for ballpark. The 72kW information is confusing me.

Depends, likely around an hour for most people, longer for those with 100 kWh vehicles.

Plug it in, do your shopping, then go home. If you live and work in the city, it's unlikely you'll be "empty" if you utilize these and destination chargers weekly.

The real question, if they are putting these in shopping centers or supermarkets, is what idle fees will look like. If you are grocery shopping are you going to leave your cart in the store and run outside to move your car? Is there going to be a longer grace period, like 30 min or an hour?

 

[alcibiades]

Those Chicago chargers are in the Aqua building, which is a very diverse mixed use: condos, hotel, retail. I'm curious how the fee structure is going to work and how cars will get moved, since it seems more practical to have someone there move Teslas off and on chargers than it does to have owners loiter in the building. Dunno.

 

[MP3Mike]

I'm curious how the fee structure is going to work

Tesla has already said the fee schedule is the same as at the "normal" Superchargers: "They also have the same pricing as our existing Superchargers."

So at the Chicago one people will pay $0.15 per kWh, and at the Boston one they will pay $0.22 per kWh. (Assuming you don't have free Supercharging.)

 

[alcibiades]

Tesla has already said the fee schedule is the same as at the "normal" Superchargers: "They also have the same pricing as our existing Superchargers."

So at the Chicago one people will pay $0.15 per kWh, and at the Boston one they will pay $0.22 per kWh. (Assuming you don't have free Supercharging.)

I guess I wasn't clear enough. The Aqua charges for parking, and the charger is in the parking garage. You'll have to pull a ticket to get in. I'm curious about the Aqua's plan.

 

[ecarfan]

I wonder if there's any chance the actual chargers themselves live within the pedestals themselves. Assuming they use a stack of the new 72A chargers also used in cars, that would imply needing 4-ish of them. They are slimmer, however they are a "solid" cabinet. The Tesla post implies they aren't shared, and hence don't need a single back-end cabinet.

Very perceptive post. You may well be correct.

So each stall of the new design can deliver a max of 72kW. That makes them far more powerful than L2 chargers like those operated by Chargepoint and others, but somewhat less powerful than the existing Superchargers. However, these new stalls are not paired, so that is a real advantage. I like your suggestion of naming these "Metrochargers" so as to distinguish them from the existing Superchargers.

Tesla's blog post at Supercharging Cities does not clarify as to whether or not current owners with unlimited free Supercharging can use these new charging locations for free or not. As one of those owners, I would be fine with Tesla charging me (and everyone) for use (and idle fees) since that would make these new charging locations more usable and accessible for all Tesla owners. Since Tesla's blog post makes no mention of current unlimited use owners being able to use these new Superchargers for free, my guess is they won't be available for free use.

I love the way Tesla is building out their own charging network because the other car companies refuse to and because the existing privately operated networks (like Chargepoint) are inadequate (slow, costly, poorly maintained).

 

[nikeykid]

looks like someone on reddit already found the one in chicago, and didn't have to pay for the charging, but did have to pay to park at the structure:

Say hello to Tesla's new superchargers • r/teslamotors

 

[alcibiades]

Ouch:

It's actually pretty expensive, which means I won't be using this stop again if I can avoid it. 0 - 1 hr $20 1 - 2 hrs $24 2 - 6 hrs $29 6 - 12 hrs $34 12 - 24 hrs $49 Lost ticket - $100

You also will need to leave your car to go upstairs to a lobby with a parking validation kiosk because you can't pay at the exit gate.

permalink

 

[nikeykid]

well i think that'll take care of those folks that absolutely have to charge or have parking passes vs locals that can charge at home without paying the parking fee.

 

[ecarfan]

View attachment 247029 looks like someone on reddit already found the one in chicago, and didn't have to pay for the charging

Okay, it appears that my guess was wrong. Current owners on the unlimited free Supercharging plan can use these new chargers for free, as far as we know right now. Interesting.

 

[eladts]

Maybe once this site is in the navigation system it will provide you with a code for free 1-hour parking validation when you are near.

 

[brianman]

Tesla's blog post at Supercharging Cities does not clarify as to whether or not current owners with unlimited free Supercharging can use these new charging locations for free or not. As one of those owners, I would be fine with Tesla charging me (and everyone) for use (and idle fees) since that would make these new charging locations more usable and accessible for all Tesla owners. Since Tesla's blog post makes no mention of current unlimited use owners being able to use these new Superchargers for free, my guess is they won't be available for free use.

If/when they do start charging, if Trip Planner is enabled and Avoid Tolls is enabled then I wonder if they will avoid routing through the "metrochargers".

 

[daytonatom]

I wonder if they'll make these available to businesses instead of destination chargers? I was looking at getting a few HPWCs for outside my gyms, but a couple of these would be much better. Ideal energy delivery rate for someone having a 1-2 hour workout.