Akin to gas stations, charging facilities for electric vehicles (EVs) are offered to the public. When not at home or work, where EV chargers usually lie, EV owners can recharge their cars in convenient settings, including shopping centers, car parks, and along highways. Now, public chargers are stepping up their game.
Before: Unreliable and Sparse
Despite many functional public EV chargers, they have lost user confidence due to U.S. statistics highlighting the worst-case scenario. In line with the perception, their failure rate has hovered around 20% annually since 2021. For example, 2024 saw that one in five drivers could not charge at a public dispenser in the U.S. (according to J.D. Power).
It was, and unfortunately is, said that such perceptions of public EV chargers largely contribute to refraining from an EV purchase, slowing down electrification. In the January 2025 U.S. Electric Vehicle Consideration Study, the top reason for EV rejection was the lack of charging station availability (51%), followed by other charging-related reasons. As a result, the EV charging business may be relatively safer for guaranteed usage, such as multi-unit apartments, workplaces, or depots.
Now: The Developing Stage
2025 had developments in the public EV charging scene. Compared to the previous failure rates nearing 20%, the first quarter observed a decrease in failure rate to reach 16%, a notable decrease. Whilst the setback of policies that favored the EV transition rolling back ensued, many states have shown efforts to regain federal support.
Still, dependence on public chargers can be unfeasible because of their unreliability. Though installing advanced DCFCs helps, the industry tightened its grip on quality over sheer quantity by upgrading existing infrastructure and fixing faulty stations. Once a station is down, it becomes a liability to owners because it can’t generate revenue. These acts, driven by loss minimization, ultimately contribute to a more efficient EV ecosystem.
Future: Not Perfect but Better
With the expansion of reliable public EV chargers comes more freedom of EV mobility. Private and public chargers widen adoption and access to EVs, as people can rely on more infrastructure that supports their transportation.
If static, the same mistakes would repeat: incompatible ports, faulty components, etc. Fortunately, change is happening, and many operators plan to upgrade their networks, as demonstrated by surveys and upcoming policies. The IEA reports that regulations on payments and reliability are arriving to improve the user experience. For one, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in 2021 made $7.5 billion available to build 500,000 public chargers by 2030, which is in progress and will continue. Their requirement of over 97 percent in average annual uptime helps advance the reliability of public chargers. Operators will continue to improve the infrastructure, meeting technical advancements. Stations that maintain higher uptime in variable conditions, such as viveEV’s Pumpy 180kW model (certified to operate as cold as -35°C, as 95% non-condensing, etc.), will drive the public EV charger evolution. Public stations will never be perfect, but they are convenient and can be more so with technology-based solutions.
At viveEV, we’re engineering chargers ready for tomorrow’s users. Discover viveEV’s industry-leading uptime charging solutions for today and tomorrow at viveev.com.