Meijer - Warren

 Introduction

A review from my road trip covering some of the Detroit area EVgo locations, recently opened in 2022.

Business/Location Name	Meijer - Warren
Address	29555 Mound Rd, Warren, MI 48092
Network	EVgo
Station Details	4 Stations (2 x 350kW, 2 x 100kW)
Cost	$0.35 per minute

The Meijer Warren EVgo station was the 3rd stop on my trip covering the new opened locations in the metro Detroit area.  This site is adjacent to the GM Warren Technical center, thus supporting any GM employees commuting to work.  (This station opened in April of 2022)

Accessibility

This stop is 2.0 miles north of I-696 at exit 22 (Mound Rd).  Meaning it does support this major east/west interstate.  However, this site has most likely been placed to best support GM employees in the proximity to the Technical Center campus.  These units have been placed at the northern edge of the parking lot for the Meijer, thus they are outside of the high traffic areas keeping the area free of non-EVs.  The station layout does not support easy charging while pulling a trailer.

Amenities

Dining options include: Five Guys, Starbucks, Buffalo Wild Wings, Qdoba, Chili’s, Jersey Mike’s Subs, Estia Greek Street Food, Oasis Mediterranean Cuisine

Shopping options include: Meijer, Aldi

Car-related services (windshield cleaning, air):  Meijer gas station nearby

Concentration

This is based on the new standard station layout for EVgo with two 350kW Signet units and two 100kW Delta units.  This station has the 100kW units that you can pull up to them, but weirdly the units are facing away from the parking spots, which makes charging difficult as the cables need to be pulled around the units to be connected.  The two 350kW are placed in a front to back arrangement so the parking arrangement will be very dependent on vehicle charge port location.

Location

While this site is located along the heavily traveled I-696, this is not a road trip route but more of a commuter route.  I am scoring this more as a destination or local support charging location and not the more beneficial travel charging location.  Distances to reference cities are Part Huron - 55 miles, Saginaw - 110 miles, Grayling - 210 miles, Lansing - 90 miles, Toledo, Oh - 75 miles.

Speed

EVgo has made a big step up from their original EVSE offerings.  By offering at least 2 units that support 350kW, and to my knowledge supporting up to 500A, they are now offering a competitive solution to the fastest options available in the market today.  EVgo is also balancing the need for many EVSE with the need for fast units by also offering two of the 100kW Delta units at this site.  These units are capable of 200A.  Both options outclass the 50kW 100/125A BTC units that were installed as part of the original install.

Summary

I helped someone get their Mach-E charging at this location.  It took multiple connection and card swipe attempts, but eventually we got it to work.  They were paying by credit card and not using any app.  I don’t know if the issues were with the car or the station, I suspect something with the EVgo stations.  Charging with the roaming apps on ChargePoint and Shell Recharge I did not have any issues getting a session started and getting expected speeds.  Note this is also the only stop on this trip that offered collocated Level 2 charging at 6.6kW.  These level 2 units are set to be free for the first hour and then $2.00 an hour after that, which is the standard cost of a level 2 unit at a Meijer, no matter if they are provided by ChargePoint or Shell Recharge.

What I paid for this stop:

Roaming Session from ChargePoint

Total Cost: $0.00

Total kWh: 4.06 kWh

Time: 4 minutes

Average Charge Speed: 60.9 kW (calculated)

Cost per kWh: $0.00

Roaming Sessions on Shell Recharge 

Total Cost: $0.00

Total kWh: ?? kWh

Time: ?? minutes

Average Charge Speed: ?? kW (calculated)

Cost per kWh: $0.00

>Roam sessions not recorded or billed

Total Score (Max 44)	Score	Accessibility	Amenities	Usability
27	B	3	7	17

Meijer - Royal Oak

 Introduction

A review from my road trip covering some of the Detroit area EVgo locations, recently opened in 2022.

Business/Location Name	Meijer - Royal Oak
Address	5111 Meijer Dr, Royal Oak, MI
Network	EVgo
Station Details	4 Stations (2 x 350kW, 2 x 100kW)
Cost	$0.35 per minute

The Meijer - Royal Oak EVgo station was the 2nd stop on my trip covering the new opened locations in the metro Detroit area.  This is another neighborhood charging location with limited road trip charging support.  (This station opened in April of 2022)

Accessibility

This location is 3 miles from I-75 at the Big Beaver Rd exit and 3.6 miles from the W 14 Mile Rd exit.  It is also 1.5 miles from Woodward Ave (M-1).  None of this makes this site particularly attractive as a quick stop on a road trip, but it does serve the local communities quite nicely.  While most of the Meijer locations are placed out of the way or on the edge of the parking lot, this site has chosen to place the EVSE in the middle of the parking lot.  The placement is also hurt by the spacing which seems tight.  Poles at the end of each parking spot prevent pull thru parking.  And the placement and spacing mean that you have to carefully consider whether to pull in or back in when parking and might mean that you need to make a lot of move to switch units because one is not working (given this is an EVgo location, that is more likely than not).

Amenities

Dining options include: None

Shopping options include: Meijer

Car-related services (windshield cleaning, air):  Meijer gas station nearby

Concentration

This is the new standard station layout for EVgo.  This station is the pull/back into configuration, which makes charging with Elektra’s front port location easy, but those with fender locations may need to stretch the cables to make the connections.  The two 350kW and two 100kW units are well sized to the current set of electric vehicles on the road today.

Location

This is not a travel stop and other than the Meijer doesn’t have much else, leaving this as a local support station.  I don’t see this as somewhere that is going to be used to support commuters and there are much better options if you are traveling I-75.  

Speed

EVgo has made a big step up from their original EVSE offerings.  By offering at least 2 units that support 350kW, and to my knowledge supporting up to 500A, they are now offering a competitive solution to the fastest options available in the market today.  EVgo is also balancing the need for many EVSE with the need for fast units by also offering two of the 100kW Delta units at this site.  These units are capable of 200A.  Both options outclass the 50kW 100/125A BTC units that were installed as part of the original installs.

Summary

This site scored only 17 points on my rating scale.  This is outscored by all but the worst of the original sites that I reviewed last year.  I am not sure what drove EVgo and GM to select this location, but based on my score it seems to be a very poor selection.  In the early roll out phase, any new charging should be considered good charging, but if sites continue to be selected like this, they will end up with very limited usage, which will then mean no money is made and thus there will be no focus on maintenance and I worry that an already unreliable site will simply fall into disrepair.  However, I have to say that this site is used more than I would have expected with a Rivian R1T finishing charging when I arrived and fairly regular PlugShare checkins, even if a large percentage are negative.

What I paid for this stop:

Nothing and none of the apps tracked any of my sessions.

Total Score (Max 44)	Score	Accessibility	Amenities	Usability
17	D	1	2	14

Meijer - Rochester Hills

 Introduction

A review from my road trip covering some of the Detroit area EVgo locations, recently opened in 2022.

Business/Location Name	Meijer - Rochester Hills
Address	3608 Marketplace Circle, Rochester Hills
Network	EVgo
Station Details	4 Stations (2 x 350kW, 2 x 100kW)
Cost	$0.35 per minute

The Meijer Rochester Hills EVgo station was the 1st stop on my trip covering the recently opened locations in the metro Detroit area.  This stop is in the northern suburbs and can serve this fast-growing area and the relatively close Stellantis Technical Center.  (This station opened in April of 2022).

Accessibility

This stop is 0.8 miles off M-59 at exit 42 (S Adams Rd).  The northern suburbs like Rochester Hills and Auburn Hills are served by this location.  The Meijer hosts these EVSEs, but has placed them out of the major traffic flow, ensuring EV drivers have easy access.  The units themselves are placed to the side of the garden center and don’t really stand out, so if you didn’t know these were here you would have some challenges finding them.

 

Amenities

Dining options include: Panera Bread, Five Guys, Asian Express, Grand Tavern, Kerby’s Koney Island 

Shopping options include: Meijer, Walmart, Tractor Supply Co.

Car-related services (windshield cleaning, air):  Meijer gas station nearby

Concentration

This is the new standard station layout for EVgo.  This station is the pull/back into configuration, which makes charging with Elektra’s front port location easy, but those with fender locations may need to stretch the cables to make the connections.  The two 350kW and two 100kW units are well sized to the current set of electric vehicles on the road today.

Location

While this site is located on the heavy travel M-59, this is not a road trip route, but more of a commuter route.  I am scoring this more as a destination or local support charging location and not the more beneficial travel charging location.  Being 180 miles south of Grayling, this site could be useful when traveling to northern Michigan.  Mostly, this site is likely to be used by commuters and EV drivers in the local area without access to home charging capabilities.

Speed

EVgo has made a big step up from their original EVSE offerings.  By offering at least 2 units that support 350kW, and to my knowledge supporting up to 500A, they are now offering a competitive solution to the fastest options available in the market today.  EVgo is also balancing the need for many EVSE with the need for fast units by also offering two of the 100kW Delta units at this site.  These units are capable of 200A.  Both options outclass the 50kW 100/125A BTC units that were installed as part of the original installs.

Summary

After 6 months of anticipation, I was excited to finally be able to review all the new EVgo station locations.  The trip started very well with a well-functioning and laid out site.  While these new sites are not as powerful as a standard Electrify America site, they are much better than the 100A single units that I reviewed last year.  I was thrilled to see another electric vehicle at my first stop -- even if it was a Tesla.  Of all the locations I visited on this trip, this would be the one I would recommend to others.

What I paid for this stop:

Roaming Session from ChargePoint

Total Cost: $0.00

Total kWh: 1.61 kWh

Time: 3 minutes

Average Charge Speed: 32.2 kW (calculated, limited by battery state of charge)

Cost per kWh: $0.00

Roaming Sessions on Shell Recharge 

Total Cost: $0.00

Total kWh: ?? kWh

Time: ?? minutes

Average Charge Speed: ?? kW (calculated)

Cost per kWh: $0.00

>Roam sessions not recorded or billed

Total Score (Max 44)	Score	Accessibility	Amenities	Usability
26	C	4	5	17