No one would benefit more from a Perth Supercharger than myself, I live 70kms from the Perth GPO, make the return trip at least 50 times per year and have free supercharging for life, what’s not to like? Read on.
The two questions I get asked the most when discussing Tesla: How long does it take to charge? and When will Superchargers be installed in Perth? The second question is usually asked by people looking at buying a Tesla but won’t make the move until a Perth Supercharger is installed. This sounds like a poor excuse as most owners can easily charge at home in Western Australia, but unfortunately the media continually promoting the misconception of DC fast charging being the be all and end all of owning an electric car has completely misinformed the public.
Superchargers are intended for placement on highways between built up areas. In extremely high population regions in Europe and Asia they’re also placed in city areas due to the lack of home charging, WA barely has that problem. Yes, there are a small handful of Perth drivers with no access to home charging, but there’s also no shortage of AC charging outlets at shopping and recreation areas.
At the moment the one and only Supercharger site in WA is the bank of 6 near the Eaton shopping complex 170kms south of Perth, this is well chosen location that provides a link to many towns all the way to Augusta. The second Supercharger site planned for Williams will provide far better access to Albany, Hopetoun and Esperance. When Tesla install more at a later date the most useful locations would be approximately halfway to Geraldton and on the way to Kalgoorlie, this is where drivers need charging that only requires a 15-20 minute stop rather than the 2-3 hours it currently takes.
So, are there any other reasons not to install Superchargers in Perth? Yes, one reason that has raised its ugly head in other parts of the world from time to time and is starting to happen on the East coast of Australia is a handful of Tesla owners that don’t understand (or by some reports don’t care) about supercharger etiquette, these owners paid for a Tesla and will use a supercharger when they have a carport and charge point at home only 5kms down the road. There are also a handful of owners that park in a supercharger bay without even plugging in just so they can secure a prime parking spot while shopping, this sort of behaviour soon spoils the EV experience for those visiting the area that genuinely need to charge.
If Tesla do install supercharger sites close to Perth, it is areas next to the highway near Joondalup, Mundaring and the Baldivis service stops that would offer a solution which will benefit all drivers.
What about people who want to drive from Geraldton to Bunbury?
For that trip a Supercharger would be better located at Jurien Bay. People doing the Geraldton to Bunbury trip would find a Perth Supercharger blocked up by locals who should be charging at home if they can.
As a Sydney sider (who lives in apartment and is struggling to get charging) this is completely wrong… There are plenty of people who have no or very slow charging at home for various reasons and need suburban superchargers.
The busiest Superchargers in Australia are Broadway (8) and Macquarie (10) that are often completely full on weekends.. I’ve seen 20-30min at a time on Sat and Sun afternoon with the car showing no stations available.
There are plenty of people who need an occasional quick charge or rely on superchargers or AC shopping centre chargers (eg. lane Cove, East Village)
There’s a reason this article is filed under “opinion” – I’m with you, Mark.
I agree with the Authors logic. However, why not have both. In the city as well as in country towns to and from popular tourist spots. It will also help the local economy and tourism.
Some of us live in Apartment blocks in the city with no charging available. Body corporates continue to kick the can down the road so to speak, waiting till a majority of tenants have an EV before providing any infrastructure.
A super charger in the CBD would be an easy way to charge our car without leaving it in a dodgy CPP parking lot till the late hours of the evening, both inconvenient and dangerous. Our other option seems to be scraping through with a 10% charge at Coles/Woolies while we shop.
Unfortunately the RAC in West Perth have dropped the ball, and their two fast chargers are regularly broken, or someone parks there fully charged without any idle fees.
A bank of superchargers would solve all the problems we’ve had since making the switch to an EV….
It annoys me to read a post like this, someone actively campaigning against something that would make the EV switch for apartment dwellers in the city much easier.
This is an opinion piece from 3 years ago – times have changed