CNN/Turner installs LOTS of new charging stations

[Gearscout]

CNN and Turner Broadcasting brought 24 new charging spots to its facilities in downtown Atlanta.

Some of these new ChargePoint Level 2 charging stations are accessible to the public but would add parking fees to the 85 cent an hour cost of charging. They are located on the upper parking decks opposite Philips Arena (Where the Hawks play basketball.)

WARNING: There is a strict 4 hour limit. If you charge longer than that, you pay $20 an hour. (And they're NOT kidding.) Still, that's plenty of time to take in a trip downtown for dinner or events.

Great to see a company supporting electric vehicles and, as you can see, lots of new LEAF owners. The planners determined there were such increases in the ownership of electric vehicles that the need would only grow. Much better than some places where EV owners have to fight for a spot in line to charge at work.

 

[adric22]

4 hours is plenty. You can recharge a Volt or pretty much any PHEV in 4 hours or less. Even the new Leaf and Focus EV should be able to get a full charge in around 4 hours. And it's highly unlikely anyone will pull up with an empty battery anyway, so charging time should be a lot less than 4 hours for just about anyone. I think that is a fair time limit because it keeps people from hogging the station all day when they don't really need to.

 

[BudRaymond]

Wait? Atlanta has a basketball team!? Who knew

No seriously though, that's cool.

 

[DaveEV]

CNN and Turner Broadcasting brought 24 new charging spots to its facilities in downtown Atlanta.

Nice! Don't see it on plugshare, make sure you post it along with the details!

 

[EVExtend]

Very cool. My employer recently installed 8 level-2 charging stations in Central NY state. We have 3 Volts, a Leaf, a Honda Fit EV, and a plug-in Prius.

They used the GE DuraStation dual pedestal chargers, but they're badge access only. Our employer charges 10 cents/kWh for using these, which is cheaper than the residential rate, yet higher than the electricity rates they pay. Win-win to help increase adoption for would-be purchasers.

I suspect if demand ever exceeds supply by a large margin, they'll have to start charging a more expensive rate to discourage people from plugging in when they don't need it, while still keeping the cost lower than the equivalent cost to drive with gasoline. Works for me!

 

[LeftieBiker]

Where in Central NY? I'd try a trip to Ithaca this Summer, if I could recharge.

 

[EVExtend]

Where in Central NY? I'd try a trip to Ithaca this Summer, if I could recharge.

About an hour north of Ithaca, in Syracuse. Actually, in Syracuse there are over 60 chargers scattered about. Most are run by Car Charging Group, and some other ones are free as part of a National Grid program to install them at various businesses. Prices include free, $0.49/kWh, and $2.49/hour.

Have you checked Plug Share? I think there are a few Level 2 stations in Ithaca too that have pretty high reliability scores.

 

[LeftieBiker]

The problem is I can't even get there without recharging once. Probably a pipe dream... Thanks, though.

 

[EVExtend]

The problem is I can't even get there without recharging once. Probably a pipe dream... Thanks, though.

Where in Upstate are you located? There's more and more stations popping up, it seems.

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

20 bucks an hour is AWESOME!! bet that will allow some great turnover now!

 

[VideoSteve]

It's $20 AFTER the first four hours...just to be clear.

 

[DaveEV]

It is 20 or 24 plugs? Chargepoint's website says there's only 10 dual-head stations there.

 

[mikeEmike]

WARNING: There is a strict 4 hour limit. If you charge longer than that, you pay $20 an hour.

I wish this was the norm, and not the exception. I have given up on taking my LEAF anywhere where I have to depend on free charging stations to make the trip work.

 

[Gearscout]

It is 20 or 24 plugs? Chargepoint's website says there's only 10 dual-head stations there.

Turner installed 24 total plugs but that's across two downtown properties. The pictured site (CNN Parking Decks) has the most, there's another 6-8 plugs on the deck just below. There are more plugs available at CNN's original site on Techwood Ave. next to, (what else?) Georgia Tech University. But I'm pretty sure the total of all sites is 24.

CNN's installation makes a huge difference in downtown Atlanta. There were only a handful of charging stations before. I had tried to search them out, but it was a real challenge to find them.

We're learning that when both plugs on a single pedestal are being used, electricity feeds in at around 3.6KwH. When one car fully charges, that goes up to 6.6KwH.

Since I only have a base model S, it doesn't make any difference!

As noted by others, most people arrive with enough charge that you only need a couple or three hours to bring the batteries up to full capacity. Chargepoint's mobile app or desktop webpage make it easy to spot when charging drops off. Because the plugs are located at the end of the parking deck, closest to CNN Center, it's convenient to jump out for a few minutes and move your car.

I have been known to plug in even when I don't need to in order to get one of those spaces. Then, an hour or two later, you can likely get another good spot as there's high "turnover" at a 24 hour news operation with everyone on different schedules.

Volt drivers increasing plug in to avoid paying for gas!

So long as the State of Georgia keeps the best rebate in the U.S. going ($5,000) we're seeing very strong growth in electric cars in Atlanta.