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EV drivers in San Diego have reported waiting for public fast chargers while Waymo robotaxis occupy stalls, with some telling the Los Angeles Times they waited as long as an hour or went elsewhere. Waymo says it prioritizes its own charging depots and tries to avoid crowding stations; EVgo said its chargers are open to both private drivers and robotaxis.
EV drivers in San Diego say they have had to wait for public fast-charging stalls occupied by Waymo robotaxis, with some reporting waits of up to an hour or choosing another location, according to a Los Angeles Times report cited by InsideEVs. Waymo says it prioritizes its own charging depots, but its cars can also use public stations, where they share limited charging capacity with individual drivers.
Waymo told the Los Angeles Times that it has staff at some public charging locations to assist robotaxis and tries to avoid having several vehicles crowd one station. The company said its dedicated depots are its priority. It also said its Jaguar I-Pace vehicles and Zeekr vans, which may be driven by human workers during breaks, sometimes use public chargers.
The report describes drivers encountering multiple Waymo vehicles at public fast-charging sites in San Diego. One driver told the newspaper, “They come in droves.” Some drivers said they waited as long as an hour or went to a different charging location. These are accounts reported by drivers; the source material does not provide station-by-station usage figures or an independently measured average wait.
EVgo told the Los Angeles Times that its San Diego chargers are available to both private EV drivers and robotaxis. That means Waymo vehicles are not barred from using the stations, according to the report. The material does not say that Waymo violated charging rules or identify a policy restricting commercial fleets from public chargers.
Public Chargers Face Fleet Demand
The reports highlight a practical conflict between commercial fleet charging and the needs of drivers relying on public fast chargers. When several vehicles occupy stalls at once, people on time-sensitive trips may face delays or have to find another station. The source material documents complaints, but does not establish how often this occurs across San Diego or how much it affects overall station availability.
The issue also matters as Waymo expands its robotaxi service. Dedicated charging sites can reduce dependence on public infrastructure, but the company says establishing depots in new markets can take time. Until those facilities are available, its vehicles may share public charging capacity with local drivers. The immediate effects will depend on local station supply, fleet activity and how charging operators manage access.
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Depot Growth and Earlier Complaints
Waymo, owned by Alphabet, operates robotaxi services in 15 cities, according to the source material. The company maintains private depots for vehicle charging and maintenance, but it may use public chargers while establishing facilities in a new market. Waymo says it prioritizes those depots, though the report does not specify how many of its San Diego vehicles rely on public stations or how frequently.
The InsideEVs report also points to social media complaints about Waymo vehicles occupying chargers in Nashville and St. Louis. Separately, it notes earlier neighborhood complaints in Santa Monica about noise from vehicles returning from overnight shifts and reports in San Francisco of Waymo cars honking near a depot. These examples describe different local concerns and do not establish that the charging complaints have the same cause or scale in each city.
““They come in droves.””
— A driver quoted by the Los Angeles Times
Scale of San Diego Delays
The source material does not establish how many Waymo vehicles use public fast chargers in San Diego, how many stations are affected, or how frequently drivers encounter full or busy sites. The reported waits of up to an hour are individual accounts, not a published average or a verified measure of the broader impact.
It is also unclear how soon Waymo expects to expand its local depot capacity, whether it will change charging practices in response to complaints, or whether charging operators plan new rules for fleet vehicles. The report does not describe an access restriction imposed by EVgo or a finding that Waymo has broken any rules.
Depot Capacity and Station Access
The next developments to watch are whether Waymo adds dedicated charging capacity in San Diego and whether drivers continue to report delays at public stations. The source material does not provide a timeline for depot construction or a formal company plan in response to the complaints.
Charging operators, local officials and fleet companies may face questions about how public stations should serve both commercial vehicles and individual drivers as robotaxi fleets grow. For now, Waymo says its own depots remain the priority, while EVgo says its stations are open to both groups. Further information about station use, wait times and any changes in local charging access has not been provided.
Key Questions
What are San Diego EV drivers reporting?
Some drivers say Waymo robotaxis occupy public fast-charging stalls, leaving them to wait or use another location. Drivers quoted in the report described waits of up to an hour, but the source material does not give an average wait time.
Is Waymo prohibited from using EVgo chargers?
No such restriction is described in the report. EVgo said its San Diego chargers are available to private EV drivers and robotaxis. The source material does not report that Waymo violated charging rules.
What has Waymo said about public charging?
Waymo said it prioritizes its own charging depots, has staff at some public charging locations to assist its vehicles, and tries to avoid crowding one station. It also said some fleet vehicles use public chargers.
Are drivers reporting the same issue in other cities?
The report cites social media complaints about Waymo vehicles at public chargers in Nashville and St. Louis. Those reports do not show how widespread the problem is or whether delays are comparable to the accounts from San Diego.
How widespread is the charging problem?
The available material does not establish its overall scale. It provides individual driver accounts and company and operator statements, but no station-level data, fleet charging totals or citywide wait-time measurements.
Source: insideevs.com
