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Fueling Alternatives: Gas Station Choice and the Implications for Electric Charging

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Listed:
  • Jackson Dorsey
  • Ashley Langer
  • Shaun McRae

Abstract

This paper quantifies the value of electric vehicle (EV) charging networks and the marginal value of network speed and density. We estimate a model of gasoline drivers’ refueling preferences and simulate how these potential future EV drivers value refueling time under counterfactual charging networks. Drivers value refueling time at $19.73/hour. EV adopters with home charging receive $675 per vehicle in benefits from avoiding travel to gas stations, whereas refueling travel and waiting time costs $7,763 for drivers using public charging. Increasing network charging speed yields three times greater time savings than a proportional increase in station density.

Suggested Citation

  • Jackson Dorsey & Ashley Langer & Shaun McRae, 2022. "Fueling Alternatives: Gas Station Choice and the Implications for Electric Charging," NBER Working Papers 29831, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:29831
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    Cited by:

    1. Fournel, Jean-François, 2023. "Electric Vehicle Subsidies: Cost-Effectiveness and Emission Reductions," TSE Working Papers 23-1465, Toulouse School of Economics (TSE), revised Jun 2024.
    2. Grigolon, Laura & Park, Eunseong & Remmy, Kevin, 2024. "Fueling electrification: The impact of gas prices on hybrid car usage," ZEW Discussion Papers 24-017, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    3. Jingmin Pan & Aoyang Li & Bo Tang & Fei Wang & Chao Chen & Wangyu Wu & Bingcai Wei, 2025. "Comparative Analysis of Spatial Distribution and Mechanism Differences Between Public Electric Vehicle Charging Stations and Traditional Gas Stations: A Case Study from Wenzhou, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(17), pages 1-30, September.
    4. Arlt, Marie-Louise & Astier, Nicolas, 2023. "Do retail businesses have efficient incentives to invest in public charging stations for electric vehicles?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 124(C).
    5. Cincotta, Costanza & Thomassen, Øyvind, 2025. "Local Charger Availability and Electric Vehicle Adoption: Evidence from Norway," Discussion Papers 2025/21, Norwegian School of Economics, Department of Business and Management Science.
    6. Pascal Heid & Kevin Remmy & Mathias Reynaert, 2024. "Equilibrium Effects in Complementary Markets: Electric Vehicle Adoption and Electricity Pricing," CRC TR 224 Discussion Paper Series crctr224_2024_615, University of Bonn and University of Mannheim, Germany.
    7. Luo, Shulong & Wang, Yucheng, 2025. "The impacts of rate surge on electric vehicle charging behaviors: Evidence from California," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 236(C).
    8. Hanming Fang & Ming Li & Long Wang & Yang Yang, 2025. "High-Speed Rail and China’s Electric Vehicle Adoption Miracle," PIER Working Paper Archive 25-006, Penn Institute for Economic Research, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • L9 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Transportation and Utilities
    • Q42 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Alternative Energy Sources
    • Q55 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environmental Economics: Technological Innovation

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