PlugShare: Charging Stations

used this for a trip from LA to san fran. i'd say the best way to use plugshare is to open google maps first and figure out in which city you want to make a stop, then go in plugshare and search that city. the trip planner is a good idea but needs work. you can't select multiple stops with the trip planner, and after you input your destination, a hundred chargers populate the map, covering all the names of cities and making it too difficult to figure out where to stop. what it should do is plan the stops for you, based on the distance your car can achieve, charger compatibility with your vehicle, max kw, hours of travel, and likelihood of open chargers upon arrival. but overall, i'm glad i stumbled across this. saw someone mention it on a forum.

Last month’s round trip between east coast and Kansas was our first in a new Model Y. In some areas like S Missouri good charging stations are scarce or nonexistent. Nobody wants to end up running out of juice and learn there’s no charging in range ahead-and backtracking is required. We carried cables and converters for all charger types, but never had to use anything but superchargers and lower power (and free) Tesla connections at several motels. Being able to map out entire 1500 mile northern and southern routes, planning for adequate charging and our overnight stops was pretty easy and confidence building. It took only an hour or so the evening before each of our 1500 mile legs. Then we were free to enjoy the drive and scenery with no anxiety. PlugShare is a very nice complement to Tesla’s on board navigation to one’s next charge station.

Apparently, the ability to edit a charging station’s information has been removed from recent app versions. One of PlugShare’s great strengths WAS its crowd-sourced information by actual charger station users/customers. I tried to update a local station that recently added a Tesla plug, but I cannot find a way to edit. And the app’s Help feature provides inaccurate editing instructions that are apparently no longer available. Update: The developer has informed me that some station owners request that the users be barred from editing their listings. Good to know. I have three suggestions. First, I’d suggest that PlugShare develop a process to enable and encourage these station owners to keep their listings up to date (e.g. “New Tesla connector available at this station.”). If users can’t edit station info, the owners should make darn sure to update their listings to reflect changes in status and features. Second, the app’s Help function should explain that some stations may not be editable by users. (Currently, the Help function doesn’t mention this, and that’s unnecessarily confusing. Third, station listings should clearly indicate whether stations may or may not be edited by users right on the listing (perhaps in place of the edit button?). My rating stands at 3 Stars. PlugShare remains an essential EV app, but its usefulness has declined as a result of these changes.