ChargePoint, the world’s largest and most open electric vehicle (EV) charging network, announced the activation of the 30,000th charging spot on its network.
The 30,000th spot is located at Hamilton Place Mall in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The charging station was installed by the Chattanooga Area Regional Transportation Authority (CARTA) with CBL Properties. It is part of a broader initiative by CARTA to promote clean energy technologies and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, includes the installation of 20 EV charging locations and an EV car-sharing program.
Part of the ChargePoint network, the 30,000th spot joins a platform that has powered 407 million gas-free miles for more than 450,000 EVs on the road in the U.S. As a reference point, the 30,000 spots on the ChargePoint network far exceed the number of Starbucks in the U.S., where the ubiquitous coffee retailer had 12,521 locations as of September 2015.
ChargePoint is building the infrastructure for the future of transportation and changing the way drivers think about refueling by allowing EV drivers to charge at home, at work, around town and out of town. Drivers can quickly and easily locate charging spots near them using ChargePoint’s mobile app and online driver portal. The milestone comes as gas stations continue to decline markedly.
A strong and growing charging infrastructure will be essential as EV sales increase to an expected 25 percent of the market by 2025. While much progress has been made, there is still an exponential growth opportunity ahead to build out a network of charging points to support the increased demand and give EV drivers the confidence to travel more places.
“ChargePoint’s mission is to get everyone behind the wheel of an EV,” said Pasquale Romano, ChargePoint’s CEO. “We’ve been busy building the network that’s necessary for EVs to become mainstream. As the demand for EV charging continues to surge, charging infrastructure expands and gas stations disappear, it won’t be long before drivers start suffering from ‘gas anxiety,’ not range anxiety. As the largest charging network, we are enabling the EV revolution and changing the experience of refueling.”
The rapid expansion of ChargePoint’s network can be attributed to growth in the EV market as well as a unique business model that puts the power in the hands of station owners and drivers. ChargePoint doesn’t own the stations on its network; instead, stations are independently owned and operated by businesses that want to attract and engage employees and customers who drive EVs.
ChargePoint builds and supports the charging stations, and provides mobile apps, analytics and software that let owners easily manage EV charging and help drivers find convenient stations, see station availability and track all charging.
Stations are owned by businesses across a variety of verticals, which can choose whether to offer charging to customers, employees or both: retail, hospitality, healthcare, education, recreation, municipal and more. In addition to the 30,000 places to charge at work, around town and out of town, ChargePoint offers ways for EV drivers to charge at apartments, condos and single-family homes. About 70% of new EV drivers use the ChargePoint online driver portal and mobile app to find nearby places to charge.
