A San Diego man is calling attention to consistently out of service electric vehicle charging stations, saying it affects the ability of many local EV drivers to have a reliable way to recharge.
"People want to know they can charge without having to wait and they can charge quickly, just like you would fill up a gas car," Eugene Vivino said.
In addition to the wires being cut on every station, most likely for copper, San Diego police confirm the EVgo station on Adams Avenue in Normal Heights had circuit breakers stolen back in May.
Vivino's EVgo app shows the location has been closed ever since. Three other stations in the San Diego area are also out of service. His closest reliable option is now 20 minutes away.
"I tried reaching out to the company a lot of times. The only thing I ever heard back was yes, there's breaker theft. No, we don't have an answer on when it's going to be fixed," Vivino said.
The director of communications at EVgo sent a statement acknowledging vandalism is a growing issue in the San Diego area.
The company says it is "looking at ways to improve the resiliency of its network" and "in conversations with government officials regarding longer-term solutions."
Vivino says he hopes speaking out will bring more transparency and improvements since EVgo is one of the leading options for drivers like himself.
"You can go to slower ones, but it takes forever. EVgo, one of the reasons they're great, is because they have these state-of-the-art, fast chargers and that's why it's so upsetting when they stop working," Vivino said.
EVgo also says it is working to repair impacted stations and bring the chargers back online as soon as it's safe to do so, but did not share an exact timeline. In the meantime, they encourage drivers to keep checking their app.
Found on Mainstream News