8 New Fast Charging Hubs Coming To Mostly Midwestern Locations

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The EV charger joint venture IONNA recently announced a new partnership with Casey’s to install 8 new fast charging hubs at Casey’s stores this year. The chargers will be 400 kW, which is quite fast, and Casey’s is a very familiar brand to many motorists. 

The new charging hubs will be in the Midwest mostly, with several Southern locations too:

• Vernon Hills, Illinois
• McHenry, Illinois
• Terre Haute, Indiana
• Parkville, Missouri
• Kearney, Missouri
• Blackwell, Oklahoma
• Waco, Texas
• Little Rock, Arkansas

“This partnership with Casey’s is key to expanding our presence in America’s heartland — a region that embodies the spirit and tenor of IONNA’s brand. With a shared respect and commitment to delivering quality customer experience, we are pleased to add Casey’s to our growing network of partners,” said Seth Cutler, CEO of IONNA.

The Terre Haute location is prime because it is only 77 miles from Indianapolis, which is the largest city in Indiana.

Vernon Hills is a Chicago suburb about 36 miles from Chicago, and McHenry is about 20 miles west and a little north of Vernon Hills.

Parkville is within the Kansas City metro area, and Kearny is about 27 miles to the northeast.

Blackwell to Wichita, KS, where there are other fast chargers, is about 65 miles.

The point is adding more fast charging hubs decreases the distance between existing public chargers and reduces charging times to make long-distance travel easier. A biobreak, a little stroll and a beverage snack or full meal may cover the entire charge time so it isn’t a burden at all. In point of fact, some EV drivers have stated they feel less tired driving an EV on a road trip than a gas-powered vehicle because there is less noise and vehicle vibration and they planned more rest stops.

IONNA is a joint venture founded by BMW, General Motors, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes-Benz, Stellantis, and Toyota.

There has been some good news about EV charging that is relevant to these new charging hubs. About 40 new public charging ports will be installed in Springfield, Illinois, which is “downstate” from Vernon Hills and McHenry roughly 220 miles. Pontiac is along the way south and has EV chargers, including some fast ones, so it might be considered something of a midpoint. About 40 miles south of Pontiac is Bloomington, which has many public EV chargers. 

EV drivers already know the point of adding all these new charging ports is “connecting the dots” to fill in the gaps in charging infrastructure. Fortunately, this trend is happening even though the political winds are not helping. The mainstream media might not be covering some of the smaller EV charger installations, but they are happening.

EV charging infrastructure is gradually expanding, so it’s not necessary to have a mythical future EV with 800 miles of range to solve “range anxiety.”