As one roadblock clears for Uber drivers, another quietly takes its place

As electric vehicles become more affordable, Uber drivers now face a new challenge: finding reliable places to charge them.

For Uber drivers, it’s like playing whack-a-mole – once one issue is resolved, another quickly emerges.

Their previous concern was that EVs cost too much. Now that the prices have gone down and the cars have become more affordable, the drivers have another mole to whack.

Uber’s survey revealed that the reason drivers in the US and UK are still not going fully electric is because of charging difficulties.

Only a third of Uber’s EV drivers in the US have a dedicated home charger. It’s worse in Europe – 27% in the UK and 13% in the Netherlands.

However, a solution is likely on the way as Uber expects 55,000 drivers in London, Boston and Phoenix to be given better access to charge their cars. The company is rolling out a Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Estimator tool to help 40 cities decide on where to locate their next public plugs, Bloomberg reports.

The tool is designed to project future demand for EV charging from Uber drivers. The service is available in cities covering almost 60% of EV drivers on the Uber platform.

Uber is teaming up with the cities of London, Boston, and Phoenix through the C40 Cities initiative, which is connected to Michael Bloomberg, founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP – the parent company of Bloomberg News.