Greater than a decade after launching a cellular EV charging pilot program, AAA is launching a second, larger-scale program that can provide cellular charging to members in 14 U.S. metropolitan areas.
The brand new pilot program affords cellular charging free of charge to AAA members within the following cities: San Francisco; Indianapolis; Philadelphia; Orlando; Nashville; Charlotte; Denver; Grand Rapids, Michigan; Avon, Peabody, and West Springfield, Massachusetts; Windfall, Rhode Island; and Bend and Portland, Oregon.
“As a part of this analysis, AAA can even discover numerous cellular charging strategies to ship one of the best expertise to its members,” the group stated in an announcement. AAA instructed Inexperienced Automobile Reviews that it is utilizing a spread of suppliers on this rollout, and it varies relying on the town as it really works to finalize these partnerships.
AAA cellular EV charging availability
Whereas not named as one of many suppliers, one firm that’s providing such cellular charging providers is SparkCharge. The corporate first deployed its “charging as a service” mannequin, which permits EV drivers to order additional vitality via an app, in Dallas, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Jose. In August it introduced an enlargement to extra surrounding communities following the closing of a $7 million funding spherical.
It has certainly been greater than a decade since AAA first tested roadside charging for EVs. The unique 2010 pilot included 5 prototype mobile-charging autos, which have now been retired. Classes realized from them have knowledgeable this new pilot program, in accordance with AAA.
AAA TripTik Planner exhibiting EV charging stations
As we realized after we caught up with AAA in 2016, the service was hardly ever getting used, although—and EV drivers usually had extra of a deal with on vary than earlier vary nervousness might need recommended. Extra just lately, automakers, and even some rising charging networks, have seen that these options help with range anxiety, although.
Along with cellular charging, EV charging choices are being built-in with AAA’s trip-planning instruments. It stated EV-specific options will quickly be added to the newly launched Journey Canvas road-trip planner, and charging stations are already listed alongside fuel stations within the TripTik Journey Planner, which affords point-to-point instructions to particular spots. AAA first added EV charging to its map services in 2012.
