The Faster EV Road Trip: How Smarter Charging Beat the Clock
Since May 2022, our Kia EV6’s odometer has rolled from four miles to well past 100,000. Many of those miles have been spent road-tripping across the country - Michigan’s coastal byways, the sweeping curves of the Texas Bend, a 21-day run to Astoria, Oregon, and down the entire Oregon coast to the California redwoods, plus two trips exploring Colorado’s mesas, canyons, and dinosaur bones highlight our many adventures.
Our first EV road trip in January 2023 proved just how sparse charging could be. Stations were few and far between - we utilized Electrify America, spaced roughly 100 miles apart along most interstate highways - and it was nerve-wracking without consistent backup options. Tesla wasn’t yet open to other EV manufacturers. And rural America - well, that’s still a challenge.
By the time we began planning our Fall 2025 trip to Oregon, the map looked very different. Chargers were seemingly everywhere, especially at Pilot Flying J truck stops with reliable EVgo stations.
On a recent drive across Kansas via Interstate 70, I counted more than a dozen potential charging stops - up from just five stations three years earlier.
And during our March 2026 drive along Interstate 40 to explore Arizona, I spotted an Electrify America or Pilot Flying J station, on average, every 57 miles.
With headlines touting an explosion of new installations - IONNA, Target, Walmart, Love’s - and now access to Tesla Superchargers, it felt like the right moment to brew an extra-strong pot of decaf and rethink the future of EV road-trip charging.
The dominant question came down to this: Do I stick with the gas-car mindset - running the gauge down to 20% or less before stopping - or fully embrace the EV lifestyle and adopt a better rhythm?
Determined to rise like the proverbial phoenix and become a bolder EV road-tripper, I set out to test a new approach: frequent, shorter charging stops designed to keep momentum high and overall travel time low.
The proving ground? Two trips to visit friends and family - with a stop at an unforgettable botanical garden along the way.
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Rethinking the Rhythm
Charging at a Pilot Flying J EVgo fast charging station while eating at a Denny’s - highlighting convenient EV charging along U.S. highways.
Short Stops, Faster Miles
A road trip stop comes down to two things - restroom breaks and meal breaks, so why not build fast charging into those pauses?
Plus, on multi-day EV road trips we eat breakfast at our Airbnb, thus we carry a cooler and ice packs and stock up while fueling close to a grocery outlet. May as well incorporate this into the plan too.
Settling on the reasons to stop I decided to make these the central focus and try charging just enough to reach the next planned charger plus a 50-mile pucker preventing buffer.
This means we may stop more frequently, but the stops will be shorter and have dual purpose allowing us to take care of business and hit the road faster.
The First EV Road Trip Test
During the first test - a one-day, roughly 400-mile drive - we stopped 120 miles in and charged to 65% in 18 minutes (a slow station, for the record).
That gave us enough range plus the desired 50-mile buffer to travel 123 miles to a Pilot Flying J, arriving with about 40 extra miles showing on the range meter.
We plugged in and headed inside, returning 12-minutes later to an 85% charge for the final 164 miles to the Electrify America just south of Rochester, Minnesota.
We arrived in Stewartville with 12% state of charge - low, but not concerning and spent 7 minutes charging to 50%, providing enough go-go juice for a few day visit. (I know that Rochester has reliable chargers, so I allowed myself to drop below the 50-mile buffer to avoid a stop in Waterloo, Iowa).
Charging to 85% at the Rochester Circle K we repeated the same process on the return trip and found that charging twice for shorter time periods reduced our total travel time nearly 60 minutes.
Testing the Strategy Across the Midwest
Quick charging our Kia EV6 at an Electrify America station during our EV Road Trip to Chicago.
An Expanded EV Road Trip
We expanded the experiment into a 1,570-mile loop: Central Missouri to Rochester, Minnesota; on to Madison, Wisconsin; over to Chicago, Illinois; and back home through Illinois.
Each day began with mapping our route and aligning charging stops with biological inevitabilities - eating and bathroom breaks (not necessarily in that order) and purchasing groceries.
EV Road Trip to Rochester, Minnesota
We repeated our drive to Rochester and found by utilizing a 175-kW charger 90 minutes from home (instead of the 75-kW charger 33 miles up the highway) we reduced our road time an additional 10 minutes.
EV Road Trip to Madison, Wisconsin
Leaving Rochester with a 65% charge from the handy Circle K, I knew my three cups of morning decaf would make a return appearance in about two hours, so we planned a stop 142 miles down I-90 at the Mauston, Wisconsin Pilot Flying J.
Fourteen minutes later, we’d used the facilities and charged from 31% to 80%, leaving us with around 170 miles of range - plenty for the remaining 77 miles to our Airbnb. This stop served a dual purpose: physical comfort and efficient charging.
We arrived in Madison with more than enough charge for two days of visiting friends, exploring the Olbrich Botanical Gardens, and enjoying local ice cream.
Before leaving town, we charged at a Walmart-based Electrify America station while picking up breakfast yogurt and berries for two mornings in Chicago.
Amp’d Advice: Staying in Madison Wisconsin -
Definitely book your Airbnb at the “Room in Madison, Hosted by Gregory”.
We thoroughly enjoyed our stay and found Gregory a great host.
EV Road Trip to Chicago, Illinois
Reluctantly leaving our comfortable Madison Airbnb with 77% charge and about 190 miles of range, we planned a lunch stop just 56 miles down the highway at a Pilot Flying J, this time for a sit-down meal at Denny’s while topping off the battery.
Lunch took longer than the 23-minute charge, and we left with enough range to comfortably reach our Airbnb in Skokie plus plenty of battery for two days of concerts and dinner with friends.
The night before leaving Chicago, we brought the car to 100%; the only charge that did not have a dual purpose, so we spent 35 minutes watching the traffic go by.
Amp’d Advice: Always lock the doors and keep a book in the car to break your screen habit during these rare moments of solitude.
EV Road Trip to Central Missouri
Heading home, we made a detour to see the Obama Presidential Center before reconnecting with I-55 south toward St. Louis driving a total 179 miles to Rivian’s hometown, Bloomington, Illinois for a quick eight-minute top-off while stretching our legs.
Here I made a colossal mistake by not stopping at the Wally’s Rivian Charger 30 miles before Bloomington. The morning detour added extra miles and time; thus, we were forced to stop at a rest area then a second stop at the Bloomington charger when I could have saved time by combining both stops while exploring Walley’s overwhelming selections.
Another short hop brought us to the Springfield, Illinois Rivian charger, where we spent 22 minutes buying groceries for breakfast at home - bringing us back to 80%, or about 202 miles of range.
A welcome dinner with a college friend in Quincy, Illinois added a small detour, but we still reached the Hannibal, Missouri Tesla charger at 18% where a 24-minute charge brought us to 76%, more than enough for the final 107 miles home.
We rolled into the driveway with 28% charge and 58 miles of range remaining.
The verdict? Approach validated.
We both really appreciated the shorter hops, quick stops, and chances to stretch. By pairing necessary breaks with charging, we cut down the total charging time, kept a better pace, and showed up at each destination feeling a lot less worn out.
I’d encourage you to try a different mindset - plan your driving day around frequent, quick charging stops. The goal is to keep just enough range to reach the next (fast) charger and stay moving down the highway, instead of getting stuck sitting through a long charge from 10% to 80% or more.
A few times, we only charged for 8 to 14 minutes. Other times, we stayed longer - but that was usually while we ate, shopped, or at night when we were preparing to leave a city the next day.
And I definitely learned a lesson in Illinois - charge more often so you don’t end up wasting time at rest areas.
Now for another cup of decaf while I plan our next EV road trip’s frequent charging stops.
Every EV trip starts with PlugShare to research destinations and charging options
Our mantra is simple: we design our route - because adventure shouldn’t be outsourced to a GPS.
Once we pick a destination, I dive into PlugShare for charger intel while Cheryl brings the magic by charting each stop on our paper atlas, giving us a colorful, big‑picture snapshot of the journey.
That blend of EV tech and old‑school wanderlust keeps our planning smooth, colorful, and unmistakably SightSee EV. Check out the full article to see how this combo keeps our road trips smooth and fun!
Birds Eye Review: The New Rule of EV Travel
Charge Smarter, Not Longer
Fast charging on the road: Our Kia EV6 plugged in at the Rivian Adventure Network station in Bloomington, Illinois, showcasing the growing flexibility of EV charging across networks.
The plan worked: stop frequently and use shorter charging sessions to stay moving.
If I were younger, with an iron bladder and a back that could handle four-plus hours in a car seat, I might take a different approach.
But then again, I’d need an EV capable of four-plus hours of highway driving - and that’s still a tall order.
More importantly, we felt better, physically and mentally, at the end of each day.
I encourage you to rethink your EV road-trip strategy on long trips or a day trip to a nearby attraction.
The process is simple: align stops with real needs - meals, restrooms, and quick shopping - to combine tasks and spent less time on the road.
And just as important, there is not a need to fully charge at each stop, only charge what you need (plus 50 miles settles my nerves) to get to the next station.
Shift your mindset, embrace the rhythm, and boost your satisfaction on the Great American Electric Highway.
And if you’ve found a better approach (other than going back to gas, pretty sure I’m doing that), I’d love to hear it in the comments.
John’s life mission is to educate readers that EVs are simply cars powered by an alternative energy source.
His favorite way to experience it? Road-tripping along the Great American Electric Highway, where the miles turn into opportunities to visit family, reconnect with friends, and soak in the country’s scenic beauty.
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