SF launches effort to build 5,000 EV curbside charging stations by 2030

SAN FRANCISCO - San Francisco announced a new effort Tuesdsay with a goal of building 5,000 new EV charging station in the city by 2030 to meet projected demand.

At a news conference in front of City Hall, District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman laid out the vision.

"The ultimate goal is, by next year, to see EV pilot charging stations showing up on curbs in SF," Mandelman said.

Tyrone Jue, Director of the SF Environmental Department is part of the effort, joining

Twelve years ago, the SFPUC installed a curbside EV charger in front of their new building as a pilot project for the future.

"Our plan is to wrap up our technical analysis by June, develop a road map for where we're going to be installing curbside charging throughout the city," Jue said.

One concern is how to provide the charging infrastructure for residents who don't have their own house or garage with a charger.

"Seventy-percent of San Franciscans live in a multi-family residential complex," Jue said. "They are likely not going to have access to EV charging so this where curbside really becomes critical to make sure we have equitable assets for the people living in apartments."

"More charging station would be a  good idea because there are more electrical vehicles coming," Angelique Hawkins, a San Francisco resident said.

Some resident say charging can be barrier to buying an EV.

"If I had my own personal charging station like at my house I would probably buy it, but I feel like just the hassle of having to  to find a charging station and like being able to charge it overnight is kind of difficult so I don't think personally I would buy one," Sai Vuppala of San Francisco said.

Some residents have concerns thought about the program.

"The first thing that comes to mind is parking ramifications, like limited parking and the impact that would have on availability," Bill Hunt of San Francisco said. "The second thing would be the cables themselves and would that get in the way of pedestrians."

"It's good because it's promoting EV cars in the city especially, but I think it's bad because it's going to take away parking spots  and it's already tough to find parking," Akhil Dua of San Francisco said.

There also is a question of equity, and concerns about making sure all neighborhoods get equal treatment.

In the Bayview, there are plans already in place to use state funding to build an 8-unit fast-charging plaza. They hope they will also benefit from the curbside charging stations.

"We need to bring everyone with us, and all communities especially with us, and especially communities like ours in the Bayview and Chinaton where there are less electrical vehicle users," said Këri Bolding, Deputy Director of En2action, a community organization that is working with the city on outreach with the community.

"We need to eliminate some of the red tape around permitting, around planning, around design," Jue said. "And so that's part of what we'll analyze over the next couple months."

The city says after they have completed their study they plan to ask for community input before they implement any of these curbside charging stations. The public can reach the SF Environment Department at Chargingmadeeasy@sfgov.org.