Seattle City Light unveils new vehicle chargers near West Seattle Bridge, with Junction installation soon

| Environment | Transportation | Utilities | West Seattle news

That’s one of the new electric-vehicle “fast chargers” that Seattle City Light is making available for public use in SODO, just off the West Seattle Bridge, and similar to the ones it will install soon in The Junction. First, the SODO announcement:

Seattle City Light announced the launch of five city-owned electric vehicle (EV) chargers at the utility’s South Service Center in SODO, with plans for at least four additional locations in 2020. The publicly accessible stations are part of a pilot program to install 20 EV fast chargers throughout the utility’s service area and supports the city’s Drive Clean Seattle initiative, which centers on delivering community-focused transportation solutions.

“The new charging stations are part of a larger transportation electrification strategy that will allow us to leverage our clean electricity and reach the city of Seattle’s goals of reducing carbon emissions by 2050,” said Debra Smith, General Manager and CEO of Seattle City Light. “This pilot will help us understand the impacts of EV charging on the electrical system as we lay the groundwork to support electrifying all modes of transportation, from passenger vehicles to buses, the Port of Seattle, heavy-duty vehicles and ferries.”

City Light also announced changes to charge fees at utility-owned public EV fast charging stations. Users will be charged $0.31 or $0.17 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) in Seattle (dependent upon the time of day). Previous fees were listed at $0.43 per kWh. The cost-to-charge can change based on the charger’s location and the time of day. At a City Light fast charger, a typical electric car can charge up to 50 kWh in an hour, providing battery power for about 165 miles. This charge would cost approximately $15.88 during “Daytime” hours or $8.69 during “All Other Hours” in Seattle.

“The reduced fees come at a time when City Light is developing a Transportation Electrification Plan that will identify priorities for the utility’s investments in increasing equitable access to electric transportation, reducing carbon emissions, and bringing value to the electric grid and City Light customers,” said Emeka Anyanwu, City Light’s Energy Innovation and Resources Officer.

This new fee structure ensures City Light stays competitive with other EV charging stations in the Seattle area. The charging fees will allow the utility to recover our operating, capital and energy costs over the lifespan of the charging equipment.

Learn more about City Light’s EV programs by visiting seattle.gov/light/electric-vehicles.

Now, about the upcoming West Seattle charging stations – as reported here last spring, they’re planned on 39th SW south of SW Oregon, by West Seattle Bowl. SCL’s project map says they’re expected to be up and running in March.

Wondering December 18, 2019 (3:01 pm)

Motor Trend magazine did a story on driveing an ev from LA to San Fran. They found a lot of charging stations that were broken and others where to car was charged up but the owner hadn’t moved it. They’ve also relayed stories of people unplugging car’s so they could plug in their’s. My point of this is to ask:do they have clear rules? do they monitor so they’re fixed quickly?

WSB December 18, 2019 (3:04 pm)

Well, the ones just unveiled are literally AT a City Light facility so you would expect that won’t be a problem…
- Wondering December 18, 2019 (3:38 pm)
  
  One can only hope….

Shawn December 18, 2019 (3:29 pm)

I’m quite happy about this… I don’t fast charge often, it only works up to 80% and is always more expensive (though cheaper than gas was). But up to now i’ve had to go to georgetown (SSC) or all the way downtown if I wanted to fast charge.

Seriously? December 19, 2019 (8:33 am)

Just out of curiosity, how long does it take to fully charge an electronic car v filling a gas tank fully? (No snarkiness intended, true curiosity).
- Blbl December 19, 2019 (10:20 am)
  
  It depends on the charger. There are different levels of charging speed, and how long it takes to fully charge also depends on the range of your vehicle. This charger is 50 kWh and that gives about 165 miles of charge in one hour. Tesla’s supercharger is about twice that fast, and they now have an even faster super charger that gives about 300 miles in half an hour. So it is still much longer to “fill up“ an electric car than a gas car, but I don’t “fill up“ an electric car the same way I did my ICE. I have owned my electric car for almost 2 years now, and I have paid less than $50 in charging. My work offers free charging so I just “fill up” while I’m at work.
- WS Steve December 20, 2019 (10:35 am)
  
  When thinking about EV charging it’s important to recognize that for local daily trips, you never really need to charge publicly if you have a home charging unit. You just plug in when you get home, and then you have plenty of range for a normal day’s driving even with older EVs with smaller batteries than you can get now. Many workplaces offer charging now as well, so you could plug in while at work.
  
  For those times when you need to boost your range, a fast charger will add a lot of range very quickly on a low battery. When the charge level is low, the battery charges much more quickly, so you can go from 25% to 50% in much less time than from 50% to 75%. And that’s often all you need before reaching the next stop where you can charge up all the way.
  
  I have a car with 100 mile range and never have range anxiety during daily driving. But my Leaf is not designed for taking long trips. You’d want a bigger battery for that, and a good network like Tesla’s.

pdid December 19, 2019 (6:00 am)

I’m excited for better charging options next to Trader Joes. These stations pair really well with grocery stores so a 20 minute shop can add a days worth of range, and people don’t camp out in them in those cases. The charge point network under whole foods is a great example.

Rockergirl5678 December 19, 2019 (8:44 am)

This is good news we have needed fast chargers in West Seattle for a long time and there literally isn’t any to close by. I usually go to Burien or Renton Nissan if I need a fast charge but many times they are in use or broken. Their is no “quick” response when they need repair and it sucks cause there are so few available. Very glad to see more being installed in the area and hope they are well maintained once in operation.

Dawson December 19, 2019 (12:03 pm)

Epic fail on the branding due to the letter coloring. Reads as “Por Seattle” would have been more uplifting if the “WE” we’re same color as “Seattle”

WS Steve December 20, 2019 (10:26 am)

If you don’t currently have an electric car, Seattle City Light is apparently providing rebates to customers who buy a 2019 Nissan Leaf. The offer expires soon. I own two of these and they are great…the new ones have much greater range and offer even better features. https://www.publicpower.org/public-power-rebates-nissan-leaf