Access to Public Near-Home Charging Among Electric Vehicles Without Home Charging: Senate Bill 1000 Third California Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Deployment Assessment

The third Senate Bill (SB) 1000 California Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Deployment Assessment evaluates access to public near-home charging among electric vehicle (EV) owners who are less likely to have home charging. The ability to charge an EV at home increases driver convenience and reduces the need for and reliance on public charging. The authors estimate the likelihood of having home charging using a variety of inputs including housing attributes, renter status, vehicle registration records, and charging surveys. 

Analysis indicates that most owners of EVs as of 2024 have home charging capability. Further, estimates from this assessment indicate that most EV drivers that do not have home charging have public Level 2 or direct current fast charging within two miles of their home. Public near-home charging access among EVs without home charging is compared between disadvantaged or low-income communities and those that are not disadvantaged or low-income. The report also provides a comparison between urban and rural areas. On average, EVs at multi-family homes within disadvantaged or low-income communities have slightly lower access to home charging than those that are not but are more likely to have near-home public chargers to meet demand unmet by home charging. Relatedly, urban areas, on average, have slightly lower access to home charging than rural areas but better access to near-home public charging if home charging is not available. 

In a hypothetical 100 percent EV future, home charging potential drops. For disadvantaged or low-income communities, home charging potential for EV owners is estimated to drop from 83 percent in 2024 to 46 percent in a future with full EV penetration, and from 90 to 57 percent respectively for communities not designated as disadvantaged or low-income.