It is often reported that electric vehicles (EVs) are rapidly gaining popularity in China. During the National Day holiday from October 1st to 7th, many people also embarked on journeys using their personal EVs. However, posts on social media have been flooding in, claiming that they had to wait for a long time for their turn to charge along the way. Chinese media outlet The Paper (Pengpai News) reported this.

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According to Mr. Li, who departed from Yanji in northeastern Jilin Province on September 30th and traveled by EV to the southernmost Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, he charged 6 times along the way, but had to queue each time, waiting for up to 3 hours. However, on the night of October 1st, the waiting lines were reportedly somewhat alleviated.

At the Dazhou North Service Area in Sichuan Province, located on the Baomao Expressway connecting Baotou City in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and Maoming City in Guangdong Province, a queue of dozens of cars also formed, waiting to charge. Some people explained that they ran out of electricity and got stranded just as they approached the charging spot, but the service area staff and many kind drivers cooperated to push their vehicles to the front of the charger.

When we called Liaoning Expressway's customer service at 10:30 AM on the 2nd to inquire about the charging situation at the Linghai Service Area in Liaoning Province, we were reportedly told that 'the phenomenon of waiting for charging still exists, but there aren't that many vehicles queuing,' and 'current traffic volume is indeed high because the expressway is free to pass.'

According to the Zhejiang Communications Investment Group Expressway Jiaxing Management Center, among the service areas under its jurisdiction, only the Jiaxing Service Area temporarily had queues on the first day of the National Day holiday, while other service areas generally did not require waiting. The Jiaxing Service Area reportedly added new ultra-fast chargers before the holiday, and also installed chargers at toll booths along the jurisdictional section.

Furthermore, according to the explanation, charging stations established near toll booths allow for immediate charging upon exiting the main expressway, and drivers can re-enter the expressway directly after charging without needing to detour onto local roads. Many drivers are reportedly familiar with the routes, avoiding service areas where charging vehicles tend to congregate, and instead using charging stations near toll booths.

On October 1st, the first day of the National Day holiday, new energy vehicles, including EVs, were predicted to reach a total of 17.8 million units. Some drivers queued for charging at service areas, finding the charging slow and time-consuming. China's Ministry of Transport explained that service areas on important expressways and those leading to popular tourist destinations experience high traffic volume, with relatively concentrated charging demand, which is particularly noticeable daily after 10 AM.

The Ministry of Transport conducted an analysis based on past data, created a list of service areas that would be particularly congested with charging before the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday from September 25th to 27th and the National Day holiday from October 1st to 7th, and, among other measures, increased mobile charging equipment and high-power rapid charging equipment in advance.

The Ministry of Transport also urged people to use smartphones to search for charging service availability, and introduced that even if one runs out of electricity and gets stranded, they can use their smartphone to call for rescue. (Translation/Editing by Kisaragi Hayato)