Electric car drivers don't have it easy when it comes to charging.
Different tariffs, different charging stations and different parking regulations.
“It's a bit complicated,” says the e-mobility expert at the municipal utilities.
Dachau -
City Councilor Peter Gampenrieder (ÜB) could hardly believe it himself, which is why he asked again at the end of the latest city council meeting: A citizen, owner of a hybrid car, told him that she was at the e-filling station in front of the Sparkasse Dachau got a parking ticket - where she would normally be allowed to stand for four hours anywhere in Dachau.
"Two hours to refuel are not enough," the lady complained to him.
Therefore, according to Gampenrieder, he would like to know: "Does that make sense?"
Is not it.
Even Christian Diecke, who works full-time with e-mobility at Stadtwerke Dachau, admits that it is “not that easy”.
The case of the woman from Dachau, who received a ticket at the Sparkasse charging station, is therefore absolutely understandable for Diecke.
As an e-car owner, you have to pay attention to three things at public charging stations: Which parking regulations apply at the charging station, which charging cards are accepted at the station and which plug is required? While owners of gasoline cars simply drive to the pump, fill up and then pay with their debit or credit card at the gas station or at the pillar, it is much more time-consuming for e-mobilists to keep their vehicle ready to drive.
According to Diecke, the Stadtwerke in Dachau now have 16 charging stations - the youngest of them was put into operation on Monday on Alte Römerstrasse near the TSV site; Seven more are to follow by the end of the year and, in cooperation with the BMW dealership Widmann and Winterholler, a small charging park will be built on Fraunhofer Strasse by the beginning of 2022. E-car owners are allowed to stand at these charging stations for four hours at a time.
As far as payment is concerned, the Stadtwerke have been offering their own Stadtwerke charge cards since the end of last year. The advantage: With these regional cards, customers pay a low price at their regional charging stations - according to Diecke, a full charge at a charging station with an output of 50 kWh costs just under 20 euros. However, it is not possible to charge an e-car with the Stadtwerke charge card in Berlin, for example - which is why most e-drivers, according to Diecke, also use cards from supraregional, albeit often more expensive, providers. A driver who has a charging card from, for example, market leader EnBW, can also use it to charge at the Dachau municipal utility pillars, whereby EnBW pays a corresponding fee to the municipal utility. So if you charge most of the year in the city, the inexpensive version of the Stadtwerke is worthwhile.
In contrast, there is free electricity at the Sparkasse charging station on Sparkassenplatz.
The three charging points of the VR-Bank Dachau on Münchner Straße are - like the charging stations of the municipal utilities - accessible to everyone, but subject to a charge.
Third, when the question of parking fees and payment at the charging station has been clarified, the plug question must be answered.
The Sparkasse station, for example, needs a so-called type 2 plug because it charges with a maximum output of 22 kW.
The same applies to the stations of the municipal utilities and two of three charging points of the VR-Bank;
for the third charging point there, on the other hand, a CCS socket is required in the car, as it is a fast charging point with a charging capacity of 50 kW.
To make things completely complicated, there are also a wide variety of tariff models.
“Finding the right person here is not easy,” says Diecke.
Charging current providers are increasingly demanding blocking fees so that the charging station is cleared again and the charging parking space is not misused as a cheap long-term parking space.
But: In most cases, a charging process is completed within four hours.
All in all, expert Diecke admits, there are a few things to consider for consumers due to the numerous contracts, fee regulations and fee types.
Not only did Peter Gampenrieder remain at a loss in the city council, but also all of his colleagues.
Lord Mayor Florian Hartmann also shook his head.
“It makes sense,” he said, “no, it doesn't make sense at the moment”.
