Electric Vehicle Market Insights – What Do Ev Consumers Really Want And How Can Site Hosts Prepare?

Electric vehicle (EV) charging station site hosts might be able to further attract and satisfy their customer needs if they focus on key site attributes related to safety, according to a new report.

The Transportation Energy Institute’s (TEI) Electric Vehicle Council (EVC) released a new report titled ‘Electric Vehicle Market Insights‘.

The EVC commissioned Heart + Mind Strategies, which followed an integrated approach to determine the current perceptions and behaviors of light-duty EV drivers and charging station operators, and site hosts. The methodology surveyed drivers (EV and non-EV) and business operators in the U.S. and interviewed EV charging station site hosts and operators in North America and Europe.

According to their findings, four of the five most preferred site amenities and services of EV drivers were related to safety, yet fewer than two-thirds of charging facilities surveyed offer these specific services to their customers.

The most important site features desired by EV drivers included:

1. Multiple charging spots
2. Open 24 hours per day, 7 days per week (provided by 52% of sites surveyed)
3. Chargers located in a highly visible location (provided by 68% of sites surveyed)
4. Bright lighting around charging units (provided by 56% of sites surveyed)
5. Visible security cameras (provided by 65% of sites surveyed)

Charging station site hosts that offered these services, plus a playground for children, could potentially “activate” 94.2% of EV drivers to visit their site for their charging needs.

The study also evaluated the complexity site hosts experienced when they entered into the market, the business model they chose, the economic performance of charging stations relative to the host’s expectations, when businesses not currently offering charging expect to enter the market and why, how different categories of EV drivers use their vehicles and how they find, use and pay for public charging, and why non-EV drivers might or might not consider an EV for a future vehicle purchase.

Hundreds of surveys have been released asking drivers about their experience, preferences, and intent. However, this is the first of which we are aware that combines insights from drivers with the experience of charger site hosts. This type of analysis is critical if we are to build a charging network that satisfies the needs of both the driver and the site host and provides business value to those investing in infrastructure. This report provides a valuable baseline against which we can discuss how this infrastructure should be built to succeed.