Customer satisfaction at large charging parks: Expectation-disconfirmation theory for fast charging

Jessica Bollenbach, Stephanie Halbrügge, Lars Wederhake, Martin Weibelzahl and Linda Wolf

Applied Energy, 2024, vol. 365, issue C, No S0306261924001181

Abstract: Drivers of battery electric vehicles, especially along motorways, require fast-charging services and expect maximum charging power to overcome long servicing times. However, charging park operators cannot always meet customer expectations due to economic and technical restrictions. According to the expectation-disconfirmation theory, the resulting expectation-performance gap increases the dissatisfaction of vehicle drivers regarding the servicing time in a non-linear manner. Therefore, we present an optimization model with a utilitarian welfare function grounded in social choice theory. Besides a current real-world case based on a fast-charging park in Germany, we analyze further (technical) developments of electric mobility with four future cases. Compared to a uniform power allocation, our results display a reduced absolute average gap of up to 4 min (i.e., 13.3%) between expected and actual servicing time in the real-world case, thus, improving welfare by 22.9%. With an increased average gap reduction of up to 5.2 min, our future cases show the importance of addressing the expectations of battery electric vehicle drivers. Without a smart power allocation, the gap and simultaneously the dissatisfaction of vehicle drivers regarding the servicing time can increase, and potentially more hardware upgrades may be necessary.

Keywords: Electric mobility; Smart charging; Fast charging; Utilitarian welfare; Customer satisfaction; Expectation-performance gap (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2024.122735

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