DCFC Stations Bakersfield to the Sierra Nevada East Side Coming

Long overlooked by California's electrification effort, the vast area east of Bakersfield will soon be getting its first public DC fast charging (DCFC) stations for electric vehicles (EVs).

Drivers of non-Tesla EVs traveling east of Bakersfield currently find a veritable charging desert. There are no public DCFC stations east of Bakersfield until you reach Baker on the route to Las Vegas--and that station only recently opened. Tesla operates private fast charging stations, what they call superchargers, in Mojave, Inyokern, and Mammoth Lakes, as well as elsewhere.

However, three programs are underway to locate stations on the east side of the Sierra Nevada. Two are being developed by the state of California. The third is being developed privately by the Volkswagen (VW) subsidiary Electrify America.

Two of those programs should see construction begin on several stations this summer. All stations should be completed by the end of 2019.

The California Energy Commission (CEC)'s Interregional Corridor contract GFO-15-603 awarded grants to two companies, ChargePoint and EV Connect, for installations in Tehachapi, Mojave, Inyokern, and Kramer Junction.

CalTrans, the state's transportation department, will be installing stations in its 30-30 program at safety roadside rest areas at Coso Junction, and Independence, as well as at its district headquarters in Bishop.

ChargePoint plans to install a DCFC station in Tehachapi in the Capital Cities development north of Hwy 58, another near Inyokern and Hwy 14, and another at the Kramer Junction of Hwy 58 and US 395.

EV Connect is responsible for installing a station at the airport in Inyokern and another in Mojave. They are expected to break ground on the Inyokern station this month.



VW will be installing a number of stations under its consent decree for Dieselgate. VW's Electrify America hired Black & Veatch to build the sites--the same people who built Tesla's supercharger network in the state. Though VW builds cars using the CCS standard, Electrify America will install both CHAdeMO, the Japanese standard, and CCS connections. They will future proof the stations with the capability of raising charging capacity up to 350 kW. Typically, non-Tesla stations charge at no more than 50 kW per connection. Electrify America's stalls will accept RFID, mobile pay apps, and credit cards for payment.



All 600 chargers for VW's first cycle of development in California have been ordered. Manufacturers selected include ABB, BTC Power, Efacec, and Signet. Permitting for the selected sites begin this quarter.

Electrify America's deliberately vague maps don't provide much detail, but it appears they plan a station somewhere between Bakersfield and Mojave. They also have stations planned for somewhere between Inyokern and Olancha and a third station somewhere around Bishop.

CalTrans has yet to award contracts for its stations. Nevertheless, they are scheduled to be on line by mid-2019.

Yes it is good that these fast chargers are coming. That said, don't hold your breath for them to become operational. The CEC-funded ones seem particularly slow. The award winners for the N-S corridor (101, 5) were announced in early 2016, and Recarco put out a press release that fall about their highway 101 plans. They released another announcement in April of this year stating that their first phase (101 & 152) will be completed in 2019: http://help.recargo.com/support/solutions/articles/29000021463-where-will-the-recargo-network-be-built-how-many-chargers-will-it-include-

It seems like the involvement of the CEC really lengthened this. Hopefully Caltrans will be faster because they are using their own state property.

Good summary of the efforts Paul. I would be pleasantly surprised if any of these are operational in 2018. I don't expect it. I expect a few in 2019. I've been waiting since 2015 so I've learned that the plans for build-out are not worth anything. Wake me when they're operational and on PlugShare

tgreene said:

Yes it is good that these fast chargers are coming. That said, don't hold your breath for them to become operational. The CEC-funded ones seem particularly slow. The award winners for the N-S corridor (101, 5) were announced in early 2016, and Recarco put out a press release that fall about their highway 101 plans. They released another announcement in April of this year stating that their first phase (101 & 152) will be completed in 2019: http://help.recargo.com/support/solutions/articles/29000021463-where-will-the-recargo-network-be-built-how-many-chargers-will-it-include-

It seems like the involvement of the CEC really lengthened this. Hopefully Caltrans will be faster because they are using their own state property.

Click to expand...

Yeah Tom, we've both complained to the CEC about the pace of this roll out. I saw that Recargo release. They now plan to have their first station on line sometime this summer. Glacially slow is how I'd phrase it.

CalTrans, at least the district on 395 won't send out their RFP until September--if I have that right. You can read between the lines.

Paul

Zoomit said:

Good summary of the efforts Paul. I would be pleasantly surprised if any of these are operational in 2018. I don't expect it. I expect a few in 2019. I've been waiting since 2015 so I've learned that the plans for build-out are not worth anything. Wake me when they're operational and on PlugShare

Click to expand...

Yep, my attitude too. Wake me when someone successfully charges. But it's progress and EV Connect says they will "break ground" soon. What happens after they break ground is anyone's guess. Concrete has to cure and that alone could take 4-6 weeks. EV Connect does have a new station in Valencia, unit 0001, so maybe they're ready to roll.

But yes, late 2019 for most of them. . .

Paul

Do you have any idea where the EV Connect station will be located in Mojave?

Zoomit said:

Do you have any idea where the EV Connect station will be located in Mojave?

Click to expand...

You can click on the link paulgipe provide to see mimura's map and then click on the location of any charger to get the address and other details. Mojave:

Address: 16200 Sierra Highway Mojave, CA 93501
Qty: 1 DCFC, 1 L2
Entity: EV Connect

I was actually curious if he knew any new information other than that map. The addresses on that map have shifted around over the years and I don’t trust it much.

It also lists a ChargePoint station next door to the EV Connect site, which seems fishy. While it would be great to have two CEC-funded sites in Mojave, I don't expect it to happen soon and question why they would be colocated. It may be that the separate property owners were interested and they just happen to be next door to each other.

Zoomit said:

I was actually curious if he knew any new information other than that map. The addresses on that map have shifted around over the years and I don’t trust it much.

It also lists a ChargePoint station next door to the EV Connect site, which seems fishy. While it would be great to have two CEC-funded sites in Mojave, I don't expect it to happen soon and question why they would be colocated. It may be that the separate property owners were interested and they just happen to be next door to each other.

Click to expand...

EV Connect's local agent said he hopes to make an announcement "soon". He did say the station was at a restaurant in Mojave. Otherwise all we have to go on is miimura's map and that data comes from the CEC. I've checked and his map is up-to-date with the CEC. That doesn't meant that's where we'll find the station in the end, but that the location on the map is currently "official".

Actually I wouldn't mind if stations were co-located. That gives us a higher percentage chance two stalls will be working.

Paul

{{ Edited by mod to remove all the "this is the wrong thread" stuff - said stuff has been moved. }}

{...} As noted on another thread, CalTrans stations are all delayed by at least a year and possibly more. We won't see those until the next of next year at the earliest. To my knowledge nothing has happened in Mojave or Inyokern yet either.

Paul

No visible changes or improvements to the two potential sites in Mojave.

Zoomit said:

No visible changes or improvements to the two potential sites in Mojave.

Click to expand...

Thanks.

Paul

Funding has been approved. Construction "could" begin this summer. No timetable for completion.

Paul

Guy (GRA) has posted

"EA is building a QC site at the Von's in Bishop. It's a bit far (0.6 miles) in typical Bishop summer temps to walk to Schat's Bakery or the White Mtn. Ranger District office, but it should make trips up the east side a lot easier. Other EA QCs are being built in Bakersfield, Barstow and Hesperia, so access to 395 from teh south should be much improved, although at least a couple more ON 395 are needed."

Paul

Here is the latest version of the Electrify America Cycle 1 map. It is a corrected version of a map that was first released in late January of 2019.

Thanks Jeff. I saw that on your web site. I can't seem to find the map on EA's own site. Where do they hide it?

From that map it looks like they still plan a site near Tehachapi and Olancha. No reports on progress, if any, at the Bishop site.

Paul

paulgipe said:

Thanks Jeff. I saw that on your web site. I can't seem to find the map on EA's own site. Where do they hide it?

Click to expand...

It’s linked as a resource on the January 28, 2019 press release at:

https://www.electrifyamerica.com/news-updates

When it was first posted it on January 28 it had multiple errors. I pointed them out and they removed it. Then they fixed it and relinked it a couple of weeks ago and then it somehow was unlinked again. It’s back now (I think). They are in the midst of making bigger changes to the website and it may have gotten lost in the shuffle earlier.

Jeff, Guy, et al,

Geo is reporting Coso Junction and Bishop EA stations under construction with Coso quite well along.

https://www.plugshare.com/location/186193
https://www.plugshare.com/location/190894

Paul

Denny's Tehachapi ChargePoint DCFC Activity--Finally

Denny's on Hwy 58 in Tehachapi has been slated for a ChargePoint DCFC station for some time. As of two weeks ago there was no sign of activity. Today there was a chain-link fence closing off a portion of the parking lot nearest Magellan Drive. A port-a-potty had also been dropped off.

The ChargePoint station in Tehachapi is part of the CEC's GFO-15-603 for Interregional Corridors.

As of one week ago there was no sign of activity at the Denny's in Mojave or the nearby Best Western. This location is slated for an EV Connect station as part of the same CEC program.

There was no activity on the proposed ChargePoint station at the Comanche Road Shell and Hwy 58 near Bakersfield.

ChargePoint also has a proposed station at Robber's Roost in Inyokern on Hwy 14 as well.

Paul

CalTrans' DCFC Stations on the East Side Not Yet Out to Bid--EA's Under Construction

While funding for CalTrans' District 9 DC Fast Charge stations under the state's 30-30 program has been approved, the stations have yet to go out for bid. Bids likely will be released in July 2019 with construction to begin in the fall. CalTrans' objective is to have the stations in the ground by the end of the year. However, it is more likely that they won't be in service until the first quarter of 2020.

District 9 encompasses US Hwy 395 on the East Side of California's Sierra Nevada. The highway serves heavy summer recreational traffic to national forests and Yosemite National Park. It also serves heavy winter traffic to the ski resort of Mammoth Mountain north of Bishop, California.

CalTrans planned DCFC stations at the Coso Junction and Division Creek rest areas and the district office in Bishop.

There are currently no non-Tesla DCFC stations on the East Side.

There are J1772 and Tesla destination charge stations in Mammoth at the resort's hotels.

Meanwhile Electrify America has stations under construction at Coso Junction and in Bishop. The Eastern Sierra Electric Vehicle Association's Don Condon is also reporting EA equipment on the ground in Bridgeport. According to photos on PlugShare, the Coso Junction station is quite advanced with EA's kiosks in the ground. It's likely that EA will have its stations operational before those of CalTrans.

In addition, ChargePoint has a station planned for Robber's Roost on Hwy 14 in Inyokern as part of the CEC's GFO-15-603 for Interregional Corridors. As part of the same program EV Connect has stations planned for Mojave and Inyokern. As of two weeks ago there was no sign of activity in Mojave.

These stations are necessary to make non-Tesla EV travel on US 395 and the East Side possible.