Idle occupancy and dead piles: new challenges in public charging station promotion

As a sustainable and efficient means of mobility, new-energy vehicles are increasingly favoured. The rapid growth of these vehicles requires more attention to the construction and operation of charging infrastructure. However, the development of charging infrastructure faces multiple challenges. A m...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Mushu Zhao, Dawei Wang, Weifeng Li
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2025-04-01
Series:Annals of GIS
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/19475683.2025.2472781
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849326106498301952
author Mushu Zhao
Dawei Wang
Weifeng Li
author_facet Mushu Zhao
Dawei Wang
Weifeng Li
author_sort Mushu Zhao
collection DOAJ
description As a sustainable and efficient means of mobility, new-energy vehicles are increasingly favoured. The rapid growth of these vehicles requires more attention to the construction and operation of charging infrastructure. However, the development of charging infrastructure faces multiple challenges. A mismatch exists between high construction costs, low utilisation rates, an expanding market size and increasing charging demand. Moreover, this emerging vehicle refuelling brings about new issues, such as idle occupancy and dead piles. These challenges can reduce the turnover rate of public charging stations, leading to resource wastage. Therefore, it is crucial to comprehend the dynamics of idle occupancy and dead piles, along with their potential impacts, to optimise the operation and management of the charging facilities. This study marks the first attempt to investigate charging failures and their effects on station utilisation using charging status big data, based on Shenzhen, a pioneering city in vehicle electrification with a dense network of public charging stations. The descriptive analysis and regression results indicate widespread idle occupancy, with substantial temporal variations and spatial clustering. Furthermore, idle occupancy and dead piles in the previous hour reduce the charging rate at the same type of charging stations in the following hour. At fast-charging stations, idle occupancy and dead piles increase charging pressure in the surrounding area. In contrast, at slow-charging stations, idle occupancy and dead piles prompt users to shift towards fast-charging alternatives. Additionally, lower socio-economic groups experience higher idle occupancy rates. As a systematic and empirical exploration of charging failures, this study provides evidence to guide the planning, operation and management of charging infrastructure, thereby further promoting the development of the new-energy market.
format Article
id doaj-art-10a43eb337ea44b0b13fb0908f240c5c
institution Kabale University
issn 1947-5683
1947-5691
language English
publishDate 2025-04-01
publisher Taylor & Francis Group
record_format Article
series Annals of GIS
spelling doaj-art-10a43eb337ea44b0b13fb0908f240c5c2025-08-20T03:48:14ZengTaylor & Francis GroupAnnals of GIS1947-56831947-56912025-04-0131225127110.1080/19475683.2025.2472781Idle occupancy and dead piles: new challenges in public charging station promotionMushu Zhao0Dawei Wang1Weifeng Li2Department of Urban Planning and Design, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, ChinaDepartment of Urban Planning and Design, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, ChinaDepartment of Urban Planning and Design, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, ChinaAs a sustainable and efficient means of mobility, new-energy vehicles are increasingly favoured. The rapid growth of these vehicles requires more attention to the construction and operation of charging infrastructure. However, the development of charging infrastructure faces multiple challenges. A mismatch exists between high construction costs, low utilisation rates, an expanding market size and increasing charging demand. Moreover, this emerging vehicle refuelling brings about new issues, such as idle occupancy and dead piles. These challenges can reduce the turnover rate of public charging stations, leading to resource wastage. Therefore, it is crucial to comprehend the dynamics of idle occupancy and dead piles, along with their potential impacts, to optimise the operation and management of the charging facilities. This study marks the first attempt to investigate charging failures and their effects on station utilisation using charging status big data, based on Shenzhen, a pioneering city in vehicle electrification with a dense network of public charging stations. The descriptive analysis and regression results indicate widespread idle occupancy, with substantial temporal variations and spatial clustering. Furthermore, idle occupancy and dead piles in the previous hour reduce the charging rate at the same type of charging stations in the following hour. At fast-charging stations, idle occupancy and dead piles increase charging pressure in the surrounding area. In contrast, at slow-charging stations, idle occupancy and dead piles prompt users to shift towards fast-charging alternatives. Additionally, lower socio-economic groups experience higher idle occupancy rates. As a systematic and empirical exploration of charging failures, this study provides evidence to guide the planning, operation and management of charging infrastructure, thereby further promoting the development of the new-energy market.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/19475683.2025.2472781Public charging infrastructureidle occupancydead pilebuilt environmentspatial temporal analysis
spellingShingle Mushu Zhao
Dawei Wang
Weifeng Li
Idle occupancy and dead piles: new challenges in public charging station promotion
Annals of GIS
Public charging infrastructure
idle occupancy
dead pile
built environment
spatial temporal analysis
title Idle occupancy and dead piles: new challenges in public charging station promotion
title_full Idle occupancy and dead piles: new challenges in public charging station promotion
title_fullStr Idle occupancy and dead piles: new challenges in public charging station promotion
title_full_unstemmed Idle occupancy and dead piles: new challenges in public charging station promotion
title_short Idle occupancy and dead piles: new challenges in public charging station promotion
title_sort idle occupancy and dead piles new challenges in public charging station promotion
topic Public charging infrastructure
idle occupancy
dead pile
built environment
spatial temporal analysis
url https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/19475683.2025.2472781
work_keys_str_mv AT mushuzhao idleoccupancyanddeadpilesnewchallengesinpublicchargingstationpromotion
AT daweiwang idleoccupancyanddeadpilesnewchallengesinpublicchargingstationpromotion
AT weifengli idleoccupancyanddeadpilesnewchallengesinpublicchargingstationpromotion