Flying J – Saginaw

Introduction

This is a site review from part 3 of the ongoing series to follow the EVgo expansion in the metro Detroit area.  This part visits new Pilot/Flying J locations and then follows up on some of the existing stations.  Visits done on June 23, 2025

Business/Location Name	Flying J
Address	3475 E Washington Rd, Saginaw, MI 48601
Network	EVgo
Station Details	2 Stations (2 Dual Output – 350kW)
Cost	$0.49/kWh

I visited the Saginaw Flying J station as part of my travels to continue to review the ongoing expansion of EVgo sites.  This is not part of the Detroit area EVgo build out, but is part of the nationwide partnership between EVgo, GM and Pilot/Flying J.  (This station opened in September 2024).

Accessibility

This Flying J is on I-75.  The site is 0.3 miles from I-75 exit 151.  The units themselves are in the southeast corner of the parking lot, farthest from the building and easy to spot from the road.  The spots are wide and covered.  There is no pull through parking provided here.

Amenities

Dining options: Wendy’s, McDonald’s

Shopping options: Dollar General

Car-related services (windshield cleaning, air): Flying J

Concentration

This is the new standard 2 station layout for EVgo at the Pilot/Flying J partner locations.  With just 2 stations this site can still support up to 4 vehicles charging simultaneously. The 350kW dual charging units support pull through parking.  Depending on charge port location you can pick which side is best to pull up towards.  There is a benefit that just 2 units can provide high-power charging to 4 vehicles at once, but the risk is that one station going down could impact 2 stalls of charging.

Location

This site is on the east side of Saginaw, on I-75 just south of the Zilwaukee bridge.  This site supports travel on this north/south corridor; to the north along I-75 is Grayling (105 miles) and Mackinaw City (190 miles).  To the south, along I-75 is Detroit (100 miles) and using US-23 is Ann Arbor (85 miles).

50 Mile Loop:

150 Mile Estimated Coverage:

Speed

EVgo is supporting maximum CCS charging speeds.  The high-power Delta units are capable of both max 1000V and can do 500A.  These newer Pilot/Flying J sites are NEVI compliant supporting up to 350kW (and at least 150kW) on all 4 ports.  The sites are well equipped to handle both road trip traffic and occasional local travel needs. This site has a 750kVA transformer providing all the power needed to run both power units at the full rated 350kW.  The dispensers here are marked with date code 2253 and the power cabinets are 2205, meaning these units were built from the beginning to the end of 2022.  Still using made in Taiwan units.  The Delta charging units here should be available to serve the electric car community for years to come as the infrastructure build out continues.

Summary

After leaving the ChargePoint units in Brighton, I stopped to check on the progress of one of the NEVI sites in Flint.  The Express Stop on Corunna Rd had fencing up and some conduit placed, indicating the very beginnings of construction.  They will need to pull in power from the polls along the main road.  With that stop out of the way, I arrived at this next stop to find a GMC Hummer SUV charging and the same Audi eTron from my first stop.  I assisted the driver of the eTron in getting a session started as the EVgo app had failed to update the location and was still trying to start sessions at the previous stop.  Once the correct site was selected the charge started without issue.  Seeing that the Hummer was above 90%, it was a GM test vehicle, I chose to charge on that unit and not share power with the Audi that was trying to make a very quick stop.  I grabbed lunch at the Wendy’s in the Flying J and after a 10-minute charge was on my way once again.  This site scored a very high ‘B’, almost pushing into the elite ‘A’ tier station group.

NEVI Location in Flint coming soon.

What I paid for this stop:

Total Cost: $13.82

Total kWh: 26.621

Time: 10 minutes

Average Charge Speed: 160 kW 

Cost per kWh: $0.49

Total Score (Max 44)	Score	Accessibility	Amenities	Usability
33	B	6	6	21

Alternatives:

IPPEL Building - 113 S Hamilton St, Saginaw, MI 48602 - $0.16/kWh- 62.5kW x 2 

(ChargePoint)

Landmark Plaza - 2822 Tittabawassee Rd, Saginaw, MI 48604 - $0.60/kWh - 300kW x 6

(Rivian)

Questions or Comments:

dantheevman@gmail.com

BP – Brighton

Introduction

This is a site review from part 3 of the ongoing series to follow the EVgo expansion in the metro Detroit area.  As part of this series, I took the opportunity to visit some intermediate sites.  Visits done on June 23, 2025

Business/Location Name	BP
Address	204 W Grand River Ave, Brighton, MI 48116
Network	ChargePoint
Station Details	2 linked 62.5kW Stations or 125 kW from the pair.
Cost	$0.48 per kWh + 6% sales tax

The BP in Brighton station was the 2nd charging stop on my trip to update EVgo station build out in Michigan.  This ChargePoint location was installed with CCS and J3400 connectors plugs making this site excellent for future use as more and more vehicles start to use the J3400 connector standard.  Even with lower speeds and higher costs this site seems to get adequate usage.  I am stopping here to add to my US-23 route coverage as this site did not exist on my previous trip.  (This station opened in November 2024).  

Accessibility

This BP site is in the parking lot of the gas station.  The site is accessible from multiple highway exits, 0.9 miles from I-96 exit 147 (if coming from the east) 1.3 miles from I-96 at exit 145 (if coming from the west) and I came from US-23 exit 58 being 2.5 miles away.  Coming from I-96 exit 147, south along Grand River will bring you to the gas station.  The charge points are easy to locate from the major road, located to the southeast of the building.  The stalls are arranged side by side.  The pull beside station layout means that plenty of consideration of charge port location is required.  There is no pull-though spot at this location.

Amenities

Dining options include: Tim Hortons, Sushi Zen, Lu & Carl’s Grill, Dairy Queen, Sidecar Slider Bar

Shopping options include: CVS and various downtown small business shops

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

Concentration

This is a baseline 2 charger site for ChargePoint.  This station is the pull beside configuration. The cables are not overly long, so make sure to pull into the parking space with the best reach to your charge port.  Not much room for expansion at this site, but there are plenty of charging options in this area.

Location

This site supports I-96 east/west interstate and the US-23 north/south highway.  About 50 miles to Detroit and 50 miles to Lansing, this is about the mid-point between these 2 cities east to west across the state.  Flint is 40 miles to the north and the Ohio boarder is 70 miles to the south.

50 Mile Loop:

150 Mile Range Estimate:

Speed

These ChargePoint shared power chargers represent a decent destination charging solution. Elektra will not pull more than the single station max output (62.5kW) unless the battery is low and at optimum temperature, Voltron does a better job of taking the rated power.  The 125A and 200A current limits based on the operating mode will have most EVs charging slower than drivers might expect. The 150kVA transformer on site provides plenty of power for these units.

Summary

This stop reflects some of the best in how a quick travel stop should work.  I pulled up, tapped my RFID car, plugged in and was charging in a manner of seconds.  The EVSE units output their maximum power for the full 7 minutes and in that time I added the equivalent of about 77 miles of range.  Overall a positive experience.  I thought I was also saving money, as this site is listed as $0.48/kWh, less than the Red E $0.50 or the Tesla $0.49, but I did not realize that here they add in a 6% sales tax, making the real rate more like $0.51.  Shop smart and look closely at all the pricing details.

What I paid for this stop:

Total Cost: $6.58

Total kWh: 12.9376 kWh

Time: 7 minutes

Average Charge Speed: 111 kW  (near the max of what a well configured CPE250 pair can do)

Cost per kWh: $0.48 + 6% sales tax

Total Score (Max 44)	Score	Accessibility	Amenities	Usability
26	C	4	7	15

Alternatives:

Shell – 8281 Grand River Ave, Brighton, MI 48114 - $0.50/kWh(+$1.00) – 160kW x 4

(Red E Charge)

Meijer – 8650 W Grand River Ave, Brighton, MI 48116 - $0.49/kWh – 250kW x 12

(Tesla)

Questions or Comments:

dantheevman@gmail.com

Pilot Travel Center – Ottawa Lake

Introduction

This is a site review from part 3 of the ongoing series to follow the EVgo expansion in the metro Detroit area.  This part visits new Pilot/Flying J locations and then follows up on some of the existing stations.  Visits done on June 23, 2025

Business/Location Name	Pilot Travel Center
Address	6158 US-223, Ottawa Lake, MI 49267
Network	EVgo
Station Details	2 Stations (2 Dual Output – 350kW)
Cost	$0.56/kWh

I visited the Ottawa Lake Pilot Travel Center station as part of my travels to continue to review the ongoing expansion of EVgo sites in the metro Detroit area.  This is not part of the Detroit area EVgo build out, but is part of the nationwide partnership between EVgo, GM and Pilot/Flying J.  (This station opened in November 2023). 

Accessibility

This site is on US-223 to the west of the intersection with US-23 (a major north/south route that I have reviewed charging sites along before. 0.4 miles from the highway at exit 5, this is a quick on and off stop.  The units themselves are in the southeast corner of the parking lot, farthest from the building and easy to spot from the road.  There is no pass thru or trailer friendly parking here.

Amenities

Dining options: McDonald’s, Burger King

Shopping options: None

Car-related services (windshield cleaning, air): Pilot Travel Center

Concentration

This is the new standard 2 station layout for EVgo at the Pilot/Flying J partner locations.  With just 2 stations this site can still support up to 4 vehicles charging simultaneously. The 350kW dual charging units are pull up to, with no pull through parking.  Depending on charge port location it can be difficult to get the charging cable to reach the vehicle.  There is a benefit that just 2 units can provide high-power charging to 4 vehicles at once, but the risk is that one station going down could impact 2 stalls of charging.

Location

This site is now the southern most charger on US-23 within MI.  This site supports travel on this key North/South corridor as well as supporting traffic heading west towards Jackson.

50 Mile Loop:

150 Mile Estimated Coverage:

Speed

EVgo is supporting maximum CCS charging speeds.  The high-power Delta units are capable of both max 950V and can do 540A.  These newer Pilot/Flying J sites are NEVI compliant supporting up to 350kW (and at least 150kW) on all 4 ports.  The sites are well equipped to handle both road trip traffic. The made in October 2022 Delta charging units are from an early batch from Taiwan.  These should be available to serve the electric car community for years to come and the infrastructure build out continues.  However, it should be noted that this site is transformer power limited and only has 500kVA, so if multiple cars are charging at the same time, they might not only be limited by dispenser power splitting but also by the site power.

Summary

I arrived at this site with 72% battery, so I was never going to get peak speeds, but still managed a very reasonable charge rate.  In checking the app, this site was showing all 4 stalls available, but when I arrived the dispenser closest to the road displayed the dreaded red bar across the top and the screen, on closer inspection showed both connectors not available.  Not a good start to have a mismatch between the app and the actual site status.  Backing up to the other dispenser, I tried to use my EVgo RFID card, but that did not work, so I defaulted to starting the charge from the app.  After my timed 5-minute charge, as I was leaving, an Audi eTron pulled in to charge.  Thus, this site is seeing some level of usage.

What I paid for this stop:

Total Cost: $6.00

Total kWh: 10.111kWh

Time: 5 minutes

Average Charge Speed: 121 kW (calculated)

Cost per kWh: $0.56/kWh

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

Alternatives:

Only dealership options within 10 miles

Questions or Comments:

dantheevman@gmail.com