Electric vehicle charging infrastructure to get a jump-start in California

SAN FRANCISCO — With more Californians switching to electric vehicles and car manufacturers releasing more EV options, some drivers are saying the infrastructure needs are changing substantially.

“All of these things are kind of increasing the demand for charging so the supply has to rise to match that,” longtime EV owner Jerry Pohorsky said. “Right now, they’re actually behind. I think there is a shortage of chargers.”

That’s why he was thrilled when he heard about a public-private partnership development that will pump up the EV charging infrastructure.

“It’s a good thing and it’s about time,” he said.

Tesla is opening its fast chargers to non-Tesla vehicles.

“This is all in an effort to build out the infrastructure in the state of California that currently totals 105,000 electric vehicle chargers for public use and about 10,000 of these supercharging stations,” Gov. Newsom said in a video posted to X.

California Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfood called the move a “game changer’ in a video posted to X.

“We’ve exceeded our targets to bring on these non-polluting vehicles much faster than originally anticipated,” he said. “Given this partnership, the future is very bright for electric vehicles.”

“If you have an EV — let’s say you live in an apartment where they don’t have EV charging in the parking facilities they have there — then you do rely on the public charging stations,” Pohorsky said.

Of the public charging options out there, he tipped his hat to Tesla’s infrastructure.

“The Tesla ones are in great shape. They’re well maintained, they’re very fast and they have a lot of them in many locations,” he said.

It’s an important step, he said, as California surges toward an EV future.

“Having more chargers available is a great thing,” he said.

California has a plan in place to phase out the sale of new gasoline-only vehicles by 2035. The process begins in 2026 with a mandate taking effect that requires 35 percent of new cars sold to be electric or plug-in hybrids.