- Tesla is rolling out its virtual waitlists for Superchargers.
- Cars are added to a queue as they approach so there’s no confusion on who’s next to charge.
- The feature will start at just five sites across the U.S., but could grow if it proves to be successful.
EVs and chargers have had a longstanding hotdog and bun problem. There’s a delicate balance between the number of EVs on the road and DC fast chargers, and heavy travel days or a disproportionate number of EVs in one area can make for frustratingly long wait times.
This week, Tesla announced that it has begun piloting a new “waitlist” feature that allows cars to line up for their position while navigating to a charger. It could smooth out one headache of Supercharging, which is sitting in your car and waiting for a stall to open up.
Tesla hasn’t spilled too many details on how it works just yet, but judging on the video shared by Tesla on X, it appears that the current idea is to allow cars to reserve a spot in line as they approach the Supercharger. The in-car navigation shows the estimated wait time as the driver approaches the station, as well as the number of cars ahead of it in the queue.
The automaker’s senior director of charging, Max de Zegher, first mentioned that Tesla was testing this feature almost a year ago, however this is the first we’re hearing of a wider rollout. He recently noted that Tesla has had success in reducing wait times by optimizing the physical aspects of Supercharging (more rapid charger deployment with more modern equipment, as an example), as well as improving its software solutions—like Tesla’s Trip Planner—over time. The virtual queue that Tesla is building now removes the self-regulation of charging lines and helps to put some guardrails in place.
Not A Tesla App spotted this feature before it launched after decompiling the latest version of the Tesla app. It noted that the app also supports adding the charging status to live notifications on a driver’s phone.
And while this virtual crowd control seems like a solution to brawls over chargers, it might not be the end-all (at least not in its current beta testing phase). Note A Tesla App says that messages in the app to warn drivers if they’re cutting ahead, but there’s no logic in place that will actually prevent them from beginning a charging session. One such message is: “There is a waitlist to charge. Are you sure you want to start a charging session now?”
It’s not immediately clear how non-Tesla vehicles approaching a charger would be aware of this queue, outside of relying on their phones.
It’s a good idea, though. And the larger rollout could include safeguards to prevent folks from squeezing into an open slot while others wait. But until it’s something more widespread and common, it could also cause a bit of confusion amongst the public.
The feature will roll out to five chargers initially (four in California and one in New York). Tesla’s de Zegher noted that Tesla will continue to improve and iterate based on feedback and, if the feature proves to be successful, roll it out to more Superchargers.