The electric vehicle (EV) revolution has begun. Many countries have started electrifying their transportation systems. Probably we are going to witness a historic shift in the transportation history of mankind.
Why optimally placed charging stations are getting importance?
The acceptance of EVs by the masses, among many other factors, also depends on public charging station infrastructure quality. Optimally placed public charging stations fosters a faster rate of acceptance of EVs. On the other hand, an ill-located EV charging station is responsible for EV energy loss and/or increased electrification cost of the station, which ultimately leads to the slow adoption of the new technology. It is becoming challenging to choose an okay place for consumers and service providers.
Which geospatial layers are used for optimally placing the EV charging stations?
From the geospatial point of view, one of the prime requirements is updated urban road data. Off-street parking places are the prime locations where EV charging stations can be established. Then the service area of charging stations can be determined. Another data worth mentioning is the vehicle trajectory data (real-world vehicle travel pattern). Population density, shopping malls, existing petrol pumps, land-use-land-cover and slope data are also used.
Which GIS-based decision-making methods are being used?
The most popular is the Multi-Criteria-Decision-Making (MCDM) method that utilizes the Analytical Hierarchical Process (AHP) based weight calculation of the input geospatial layers.
