One evening earlier this year, I found myself at a convenience-store gas station with eight pumps and one EV fast-charger. I’d been vectored there by the charge provider’s phone app. As I exited the freeway, the app indicated the charger was in service and unoccupied. That was good news, because the new EV that I was test driving was “running on fumes” – that old-school term for when IC-engine vehicles’ fuel tanks are close to dry.

“Seek charging immediately,” the vehicle warned. ! I didn’t want to risk trying to make it home, eight miles away.

The charging stand was sited at the end of a gas-pump island. Luckily, the EV was compact –the charger’s location forced users to park 90 degrees in relation to the island. If the vehicle had been longer, it would have blocked one of the gas pumps. Rain began falling; the EV charger was not under the pump island’s roof. But I’d made it!

The charging duration would be short I reckoned. Just enough to get me home, then the EV could soak up 220V from my garage all night. But while reaching for the charge cable, I noticed a problem – the coupler was for CHAdeMo charge ports. I needed a CCS coupler. The app hadn’t listed this as a CHAdeMo charger. I cursed briefly, getting wet and watching others gas up and go.

I ended up limping home slowly with the EV’s flashers on.

This scenario came to mind during this year’s SAE WCX 2023 conference, as I listened to a panel discussion on how to improve U.S. public charging. One of the panelists, Justin Wilson, director of utility partnerships and regulatory affairs at ChargePoint (operator of the largest network of independent EV charging stations), suggested that the oncoming EV era requires a “new paradigm” for vehicle energy replenishment. Filling a typical gas tank and hitting the road in less than five minutes is not possible with EVs.

So, a different approach is needed. Stopping to charge in the future can be an immersive experience, the panelists discussed. Enjoy a meal while you wait for the battery to be sufficiently juiced! There’ll be co-located entertainment for the kids. Shopping! (And who knows what else – movies? Showers, like the big interstate truck stops have?)

I think the charging station-as-theme-park ideas come from those who don’t travel much by car. Or have too much time on their hands. Or are planning a chain of ElectroMegaworld charging complexes.

The EV charging paradigm already exists. It’s the quick and efficient gas and diesel fueling experience. Simply meeting the convenience and service that Big Oil deliver day after day, no matter the weather, will enhance EV ownership.

Start by posting the daily per-unit price of the electrical energy on sale outside the station. App info is not trustworthy. Next, put a roof over the chargers! EV drivers shouldn’t have to get wet when they step out of their vehicles to hook up. Why is it that thousands of EVSEs are being installed out in the open?

Design and build charging units as robust, easy-to-handle and reliable as gas pumps, which are rarely out of service. And when they do break, inform customers with a simple “Sorry – Out of Order” sign. Have the usual hand wipes, paper towels and squeegees nearby.

Alexandre Louis, chief revenue officer at Flo, a Montreal-based EVSE maker, told me EV public charging will get to gas-station service and quality levels. He is confident it will be within 10 years. It can’t come too soon.