The annoying new nightmare facing EV drivers that will never cause a problem for gas-powered cars
Electric vehicle owners are complaining about 'charger hogs' that make them wait hours in long lines to zap up their batteries.
Many EV drivers have expressed their regret over their car purchase - saying access to charging stations are 'not yet' good enough.
So-called 'range anxiety', slow charging and a lack of public stations, has long put Americans off switching to EVs.
Now, those who made the switch have taken to social media to express their frustration with those who do not respect charging etiquette.
'One thing about having an electric car is you have to wait in these long a** lines just to super charge your cars,' said one driver on TikTok.
'I have currently been waiting here about two hours now, just charge my car. There's a line behind me and there are only two stations, the middle one is literally broken.'
Many EV drivers have said they regret their purchase of slow charging and a lack of public stations
Electric vehicle drivers have taken to social media to express their frustration with those who do not respect charging station etiquette
Another TikTok user said drama broke out at the charging station she was waiting at when someone tried to skip the line.
'I've been waiting in line about one hour for a charger, I am second in line and there's like 10 cars behind me,' she said.
'This car like 10 minutes ago pulled up into the spot of a charger that wasn't working and then charger just opened up next to them which should be for the car in front of me.
'Everybody is honking and yelling, everybody is like "no you need to get in the back of the line" and she is like "no I've been waiting right there." She pulled up 10 minutes ago. There is etiquette. There is a clear line of like 10 cars waiting.'
CNN journalist Peter Valdes-Dapena said a recent drive he took from Bristol, Pennsylvania to New York City that should have only taken him 90 minutes ended up lasting hours because he needed to stop and charge his car.
'It took us four hours to get home that night. We were sitting in line for electric vehicle chargers. Blame ill-mannered charger hogs who don’t respect EV etiquette,' Valdes-Dapena said.
'It’s like waiting for your table in a restaurant while watching people casually chat over empty plates and half-empty wine glasses.'
Although the Biden Administration has been pushing for the switch to electric vehicles, only 60 percent of Americans live within two miles of a public chargers according to Pew Research Center.
Maps from the U.S. Department of Energy shows there are far fewer public charging stations in rural areas, particularly in Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Idaho and Wyoming.
Two years after Biden vowed to spend $7.5 billion building 500,000 charging stations only seven are operational across four states.
Charging company Electrify America is trying to come up with a solution for these hogs and make the experience better for everyone.
Another TikTok user said drama broke out at the charging station she was waiting at when someone tried to skip the line
Electrify America enacted a strict limit at 10 of the busiest EV fast charging stations in California.
Once a car’s batteries reaches 85 percent charged, it will automatically stop and force the driver to unplug or they will face additional 40-cent-per-minute 'idle time' fee.
It's a tactic Tesla automatically does at heavily-used Supercharger stations where vehicles may automatically limit charging to 80 percent 'to reduce congestion,' Tesla’s Supercharger Support website said.
'I think what you’re seeing is demand for public fast charging is really skyrocketing,' Sara Rafalson, executive vice president for policy at EV charging company EVgo, told CNN.
'And I would say we’ve been really at an inflection point in the last year, year and a half, with demand.'
