filter by "Usage Cost"

[stepir]

Hi,

what would be the easiest to find charging station matching Usage Cost == Free

It's an information present in the details of the station but all the available filters/sorting method doesnt allow to narrow down the search to that?

TIA

[webprofusion-chrisc]

Hi, that data field is free text so we can't parse it or interpret it reliably. In reality usage cost is a mixture of parking costs, patronage (like having to use a hotel to charge at it) and variable pricing depending on different criteria. For network costs we should probably (?) maintain that information at the network level rather than individual locations.

[stepir]

Hi, that data field is free text so we can't parse it or interpret it reliably. In reality usage cost is a mixture of parking costs, patronage (like having to use a hotel to charge at it) and variable pricing depending on different criteria. For network costs we should probably (?) maintain that information at the network level rather than individual locations.

Thanks - At the moment finding free charging station is a challenge. Sometime they just require a free membership (so they are really free) but still are mapped as 'membership required'. Some are mapped as public but still have a usage cost.

[webprofusion-chrisc]

Completely agree! There's too much room for interpretation, to be fair the goal posts have moved over time (sites that needed a card/fob can now be used by anyone or using just an app etc). Ultimately though the data will improve with the right amount of scrutiny and that takes people to do it. If everyone is using a different app (with a different database) then we still only achieve fragmentation.

The solution is strong editorial guidance and continuous concerted effort by users to improve the data, as well as a push to improve adoption of the data in favour of other competing information.

[zymurgic]

I've been trying to normalise the tariffs into something that can be machine readable, but it gets complicated very soon.
Indeed, the concept of 'free' is open to a lot of interpretation; nothing is genuinely free in life. Even supermarkets offering 'free' charging will require some sort of pre-pay account to be set up somewhere (with a minimum top-up even), even if there's zero cost at point of use, and the discounted energy costs is there with the assumption of the driver actually using the shop.

Several well-known charging networks in the UK have different tariffs for different level of subscription and method of authentication, with the rates changing depending on the time of day. Some networks are effectively charging for a premium rate parking space; and others charge for the energy you consume. Some tariffs even differ depending on which connector on the charge point you use.

From an editorial perspective; if you need any form of pre-arranged contract to supply, including pre-pay top-up or post-pay billing arrangement, that's Public - membership required.
If it accepts payment at point of use - e.g. contactless bank cards, that's Public - Pay At Location, regardless of whether it also accepts membership cards or mobile phone app.
'Public' means just that, no subscription, existing accounting relationship or payment at point of use; though the parking on that site may have additional fees or overstay fees collected by a business unrelated to the operator of the charge point.

[stepir]

Lidl is free (won’t require any registration) and other discount market are adopting the same policy

Mediamarket is free although you just need to ask for a rfid card...

I wish all those kind would categorised under the same ‘free’ category.

Perhaps another way would be the possibility to a custom operator under which a user would be able to add specific one or specific stations?

[webprofusion-chrisc]

@stepi you can choose '(Business Owner at Location)' to indicate the charging is operated by the site itself and has nothing to do with a network. This gets tricky for things like the Tesla Destination Charging network (which we currently don't list seperately) as these are Tesla supplied equipment and listed on the Tesla sat nav etc but the parking/electricity is all paid for by the site.

@zymurgic do we need a 'Public - Free Charging' category? I guess this would still be open to interpretation re: parking fees/restrictions.

[zymurgic]

When editing sites, I include site parking fees or restrictions in the Comments for Access/Directions field.
e.g.
In Supermarket car park, Max stay 2 hours. ANPR Parking validated by shopping receipt.
These apply wherever you park in the car park, in a charging bay or not.

However, if you want to filter on truly free charging, where you can leave your car charging for as long as you like, with no costs or worries, you'd somehow need to parse such complicated restrictions as the above. My thought is that the number of charging locations that are truly free with no restrictions whatsoever is nearly zero.

In the example of Lidl, some of their UK stores have enforced parking only for shoppers, others don't, and the charge points in their car parks are operated by Pod Point, and now require payment, even though they have Lidl branding, and in other territories, similar charging facilities with the same branding are free to use.