Google Maps will soon show EV charging stations to help with range anxiety

Google Maps is gradually getting smarter and in the process becoming more helpful for electric vehicle owners. The widely used navigation application is receiving a series of updates to make finding EV chargers and information about them easier than ever. These features will be rolled out for the users in the coming months. These updates are focused on the vehicles that come with Google built-in software.

With the increasing number of electric vehicles on the roads, demands for public charging infrastructure are growing rapidly. However, finding an EV charger often becomes a Herculean task compared to locating a conventional petrol pump. The upcoming Google Maps feature is expected to address this issue. While several EV chargers are located at the edge of a parking lot, some are tucked away and hidden in plain sight. This often makes it harder to find the chargers unless the EV owner knows where to look. The latest update for Google Maps is trying to address this problem.

Google Maps claimed to be showing Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered summaries describing the EV charger location based on information from user reviews. This feature will also show the users the route to the EV charger location with turn-by-turn navigation prompts. Besides helping users find EV chargers, Google is also collecting more information about them. Whenever users leave a review about the EV chargers, they will be asked for additional information such as the type of charging plugs, waiting time for charging etc. These pieces of information could be highly useful for other users to determine whether or not to use that EV charger.

Initially, these features will be available for vehicles with Google built-in and the EV charger information will be automatically displayed whenever the battery charge is low at a certain level. The feature is slated to be rolled out for the users in the US primarily, while later it will be available in other regions. This feature is claimed to be highly useful for electric vehicle owners who take long journeys.