General Motors (NYSE:GM) has boosted its place in the electric vehicles market by deploying 250 Chevrolet Bolts for its Maven ride-sharing service in order to gain insights into charging-infrastructure needs.
Beyond gathering such insights, GM’s Maven program has also increased the use of charging stations, and, as such, the providers of these stations are now making strategic investments.
Akshay Jaising of GM Maven has said, “[w]e know where the cars are being used, we know where there is high demand, and we are using that information to build out infrastructure for the future.”
Maven offers cars to rent on a weekly basis, with the cost to rent including insurance and maintenance costs, as well as a limited amount of charging time.
Despite most Maven participants driving 750-800 miles in a week, Jaising said GM has been “pleasantly surprised drivers have found a way to integrate charging downtime into their day-to-day activities.”
In less than two years, Maven has a total of 220 million miles driven, with 3.7 million of those being all-electric miles.
GM will be using the information it has gained, and continues to gain, from the Maven ride-share program to better analyze the placement of charging infrastructures and how much they are used by electric vehicle owners.
Featured Image: twitter
