The Future of Electrify America
EA is redefining their future for electric vehicle charging infrastructure. Santa Monica is the first implementation of the game plan.
The Video
Electrify America’s Defines Their Future
On August 12, Electrify America opened it's largest charging station in Santa Monica. I stopped by to visit this unique site.
According to the announcement on their website, "The Santa Monica station is part of Electrify America’s holistic approach to deliver a customer-first charging experience through larger stations with more chargers, next-generation technology, and a focus on accessibility. Recent openings, including Harrison Street in San Francisco and Fashion Valley in San Diego, reflect this strategy and serve as blueprints for future stations planned in 2025 and beyond."
So this is the way forward for EA.
In a reply to a comment I left EA on LinkedIn, EA wrote...
"Going forward, we’re only looking to build stations with 10 or more chargers! You might still see a few new stations pop up with fewer than 10 as those were already in the pipeline before we made the switch. But from here on out, you can expect larger stations as our new standard."
The New Standard - Santa Monica
Santa Monica supports this declaration as well as a new location I discovered on the way home. More about that later.
Now according to Electrify America, this location is "freeway close." That's true if you consider a six to eight minute, two-and-a-half mile drive "close".
One thing we can agree on is that getting to the location is easy.
Getting There
Let's see how to get to the new Santa Monica site using Maps.
If you're approaching from the Northbound 10, exit at Cloverfield, turn right at Santa Monica Blvd, then turn left at 18th, and then left into the site.
Approaching from the Southbound 10 is just the same except you'll hop off at 20th to turn left onto to Santa Monica, then left again on 18th and then left into the lot.
I'd argue the focus of this hub is rideshare, black car, and locals. It's located in a densely populated part of Santa Monica and surrounded by multi-unit dwellings.
Site Details
The site features 20 single-handle posts. Each capable of up to 350kW.
I'll leave it for others to geek out on the equipment used to make the station work. Here my focus is that you’ll have a high probabilitliy of arriving at a working post.
Be mindful that all the handles are CCS and there are no pull through stalls.
Amenities
Also note there are ZERO amenities here.
So if you need to tap-a-kidney I'd suggest dropping into one of the nearby car dealers. They usually have clean restrooms.
If food is what you're craving, this is Santa Monica. You can throw a rock in any direction and it will land on a great place to bop into for some great food before or after your charging stop.
Because this video will probably outlive any of the local restaraunts, I won't mention any here. Instead, head over to my Substack and look for this video. I'll share my recommendations in the post.
While your there consider following me, or better pledge to be a subscriber when I flip-the-bit to enable subscriptions.
Now, a couple of places that serve up more than a fresh dish include that should last for a while includde the Ralph's grocery store at Cloverfield and Olympic. And what's got to be the smallest of Target Stores on Wilshire between 16th and 17th.
Summary
So there you go. A large 20 post Electriy America charging hub in the heart of Santa Monica.
A great location for those visiting, operating a rideshare, black car service, or an condo/apartment dweller. With plenty of great places to stop for a bite on your way in or out.
Alright, stick around after the break and I'll share what I discovered on my return home.
One More Thing…
So something caught my eye the return home. At a freeway exit I noticed some construction equipment and some very familiar posts. Seems a new EA hub is being installed just off the Moorpark Road exit of the Northbound 101 Freeway.
Getting There
Looking at this with Apple Maps, we can see that this location is the textbook definition of 'freeway close'.
To get to it just exit the 101 at Moorpark Road from either direction.
If you’re arriving from the Southbound 10 turn left on to Moorpark and left at Thousand Oaks Boulevard.
If you’re approaching from the Northbound 101, it’s gets a little dicey. You’ll need to make a right on Moorpark, and
immediately book it into the left most lane to make your left on Thousand Oaks Boulevard.
From there just drop into the median and make a left into the parking lot.
Site Details
The site is all CCS. Sorry Nissan Leaf owners-no ChaDeMo available here.
What it does offer are two pull through spaces straddling two charging posts.
Now, these are not currently painted as pull-through stalls. They are actually six parking spaces aligned in parallel. Imagine the letter H. The charging posts site on the crossbar and you use the uprights to pull into.
Amenities
And while there are no amenities on site, that's not entirely a bad thing. As the most pertinent services are available within walking distance, including some great food options.
Look for the post on my Substack at GreenCarGeek for this video and notes on food options.
What I'll mention here are the few services that will be around for a while.
These include a drive-through car wash located at a gas station just across Moorpark to the East.
And to the North from the gas station, across Thousand Oaks Boulevard, is a CVS where you can pickup snacks, ice, prescriptions, greeting cards, as well as health, beauty, and personal care items.
Closing
Well there-ya-go and there-ya-have-it. Two new EA charging locations. One is Santa Monica, the other at the Moorpark exit in Thousand Oaks. Both offering more ports, fast charging throughput, and clean, well lit spaces.
That's gonna to do it for this video.
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