The headlines during the Christmas holidays showed electric vehicle owners queuing at charging stations on the main east coast holiday routes. Easter will see more holiday makers on the road as people take advantage of the four day weekend and the school holiday break. So how will the growing network of EV charging infrastructure cope?
Evie Networks believes a road trip between Sydney and Melbourne for electric vehicle owners will be anxiety free with the announcement of its 111th national charging location, on Docker Street, in the heart of Wangaratta’s CBD – a crucial stop on the high-traffic route between Sydney and Melbourne.
Bernhard Conoplia, Head of Charging at Evie Networks, said “Over the last holiday period between December and January, we saw our customers clock up nearly 5 million kilometres. We know range anxiety over long distance travel is a prominent concern for road trip drivers, but it’s great to see that more EV drivers are on the road and benefiting from reliable, infrastructure, which is only continuing to grow.”
As petrol prices rise traditionally rise before a long weekend, Evie Networks says electric vehicles will be able to travel between Sydney and Melbourne for up to 37%* less of the cost than that of an ICE vehicle.
“We know we are about to see petrol prices increase this week and what’s exciting is that Australia is finally in a position that means electric vehicle drivers are benefiting from the consistency of charging costs over long weekends and popular travel periods.”
Since the December holiday period, Evie Networks has expanded its network in high-traffic locations, including two more chargers at the busy Sutton Forest location and welcoming new sites in Mararra, Lakes Entrance, Swansea, Bairnsdale, Traralgon, Newcastle, Proserpine and Batemans Bay.
“Evie Networks has really focused on network reliability since the Christmas holidays and can proudly share that 97% of our chargers are online, going into this upcoming Easter and school holiday travel period.”
A testament to how much Aussie’s love a road trip, Christmas 2022 saw Evie Networks record four of the biggest days of charging in its history, peaking on 29 December. Additionally, over the Christmas period, 4.9 million km’s worth of charge for Aussie EV drivers was powered by Evie Networks’ clean energy.
The charging network also reveals their most popular locations across the country during the holiday period, including Seven Hills (NSW), Collingwood (VIC) and Brisbane Airport (QLD).
“Unsurprisingly, what we found over the Christmas period, is our most popular sites were along major corridors and between major cities, with traffic distributed evenly over Friday, Saturday and Sunday as annual leave and public holidays meant more cars were on the road. We predict similar trends this Easter break and encourage drivers to carefully plan their stops, both in preparation for travel and along their journey.”
| Evie Networks Most Popular Highways Sites Between December 1 and January 31 (by total kWhs charged) |
| Seven Hills, NSW |
| Sutton Forest, NSW |
| Coomera, QLD |
| Coochin Creek, QLD |
| Tarcutta, NSW |
Popular Evie Networks locations during the Christmas holidays
| NSW | VIC | QLD |
| Seven Hills | Collingwood | Brisbane Airport |
| Sutton Forest | Dandenong | Gasworks Plaza |
| Tarcutta | Red Rooster Vermont) | Coochin Creek |
| Avenel | Coomera |
*Electric vehicle average charging price between Sydney and Melbourne, depending on vehicle and charging station, averaged $87, compared to an average petrol price of $140 for the same distance.
