The possibility of being able to recharge an electric vehicle at home is a concern that often worries tenants of multiplexes or condo owners who do not have the option to install a charging station at their residence. However, it is very convenient to enjoy the electric vehicle experience. Having a reasonably priced car fully charged and ready to go at any time is appealing. On the other hand, what can be done when living in a residence where it is impossible to install a charging station?
While it is possible to go for daily recharging at a Level 2 charging station of Circuit Électrique, for example, it is not always an appealing solution. Firstly, one needs to live close to a charging station within walking distance, as the vehicle recharge can take several hours. In fact, if one desires reasonably priced charging, Level 3 charging, although much faster, is also considerably more expensive, especially when aiming to fully recharge the battery. Moreover, there must be available charging stations during the visit, and the station’s regulations should allow staying for more than 4 hours if needed.
So, what can be done? A Canada-based company has come up with a clever solution: adopting a community-based reservation system for charging stations, similar to “Airbnb,” which allows renting the charging station from an electric vehicle owner in the neighborhood who is not using it during certain periods of the day. Its name? The Foresta application.
While there are already some charging station sharing applications like Plugshare, for example, Foresta goes further by enabling more structured charging agreements that can extend over a longer duration.
How Foresta app is working?
In the application, the owner of the charging station can set the days and hours during which their station is available, as well as its pricing
As for the electric vehicle owner looking for a charging solution, they can find an available charging station in their residential or work neighborhood through the Foresta application and reserve it for a recurring period (e.g., from 7:00 to 8:00, Monday to Friday, from May 2nd to May 31st) or for a specific date (e.g., on May 3rd, from 6:00 to 7:00).
An interesting detail is that payment is made by credit card, which avoids prepaying for charging credits.
If you are an electric vehicle owner looking for a simple solution to recharge your car regularly, I invite you to discover the Foresta application, available on Android and iOS.
For more answers to any questions you may have related to the Foresta charging station sharing application, I also invite you to check their Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section.