Barriers to Installing Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure in Existing Multifamily Housing Complexes

Keywords: electric vehicle, charging, infrastructure, multifamily housing, apartment, rental, parking, home charging, interview
Abstract Type: Paper Abstract

Abstract

For widespread transportation electrification, electric vehicle (EV) adoption must expand well beyond typical early adopters, who tend to be older, better educated, wealthier, multi-vehicle households living in detached single-family homes with access to home charging. Adoption by residents of multi-family housing (MFH) lags far behind, contributing to the equity gap across income and race. For new MFH construction, building codes are being revised to require electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) or EV-ready wiring, but promoting EVSE installation at existing MFH is proving more difficult. We interviewed 30 property managers of apartment, townhouse, and condominium complexes in Phoenix, Arizona to understand how MFH managers think about investments in EV charging. These semi-structured interviews focused on barriers to adoption, including management’s perceptions and experiences considering, installing, and managing EVSE, and challenges imposed by their particular parking and electrical infrastructure. Concerns hindering EVSE adoption at MFH are high costs, age of the building and its electrical system, low return on investment, unclear business model, residents’ demand for charging, and future EVSE technology change. MFH in lower-income areas are less likely to install EVSE but some allow access to 110V charging outlets. Managers must decide at which parking spaces to install EVSE and some strive to make them accessible to non-residents to increase charging revenues. Most EVSE at MFHs are installed, managed, and maintained by charging companies such as ChargePoint and incentivized by utility or government rebates. More research and better solutions are needed to overcome these barriers to equitable EV adoption.