Elon Musk Cries 'Corruption' as Tesla Superchargers Disappear from Key US Route
Elon Musk Cries 'Corruption' as Tesla Superchargers Disappear from Key US Route originally appeared on Autoblog.
A common dealbreaker that new car buyers say steers them out of electric vehicles is the sheer state of the charging infrastructure compared to gas-powered cars. Although manufacturers like Ford, Hyundai, Genesis, and Honda offer new owners the opportunity to install a free home charging unit, this is not an entirely "one-size-fits-all" solution for all owners for various reasons.
However, as public EV charging appears in more public places and heavily trafficked corridors for the general public's use, one of America's busiest highways has taken a massive chunk of its EV charging offline.
According to a new report by NJ Advance Media and NJ.com, the New Jersey Turnpike Authority has ordered Tesla to decommission and remove 64 Superchargers at rest stops along the New Jersey Turnpike, the stretch of I-95 spanning northern and southern New Jersey. Per a May 30 statement from the New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTA), the state agency responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of the New Jersey Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway, the move comes as the agency decided to transition to what it calls "Universal Open Access EV chargers" starting on June 6.
These chargers, which are provided by Applegreen Electric (an arm of Irish company Applegreen, who operates NJTA's service areas), are said to be compatible "with all makes and models of EVs" and will be available on June 6 at various service areas across the Turnpike including the Vince Lombardi, Woodrow Wilson, Richard Stockton, James Fenimore Cooper, Joyce Kilmer, and Walt Whitman Service Areas, with additional chargers at the Molly Pitcher Service Area in July and the Clara Barton and John Fenwick Service Areas in Fall 2025. According to early user-reported data from Plugshare, these chargers are capable of up to 400 kW charging and are usually located next to Tesla Superchargers at select service areas.
However, this move is not without conflict. In a lengthy post on X (formerly known as Twitter) on May 30, the official account for Tesla Charging wrote that the Turnpike Authority's order came after it rejected any requests to coexist with the Applegreen chargers on the Turnpike, adding that it had been "preparing for 3 years for this potential outcome by building 116 stalls off the New Jersey Turnpike" in certain high-traffic areas.
Tesla says that it offered the NJTA "above-market commercial terms" to sweeten the deal, including offering its NJ Turnpike Superchargers with "screens and NACS with CCS1 'magic docks.'" Ultimately, Tesla called the NJTA's decision to decommission its Superchargers a step back for all EV users who use the Turnpike.
'Tesla always advocates for more infrastructure and co-location with additional third-party charging providers. This drives down costs through optionality and accelerates EV adoption by having sufficient capacity to shoulder peaks,' the automaker said on X.
Despite reaching out to invest in the state, Tesla claims that the NJTA's decision to remove Tesla superchargers is a setback for EV drivers.
"We expect that ~30 times more fast-charging capacity is needed to get to full EV adoption," it said on X. "NJTA's decision to remove, rather than add, critical charging infrastructure is a setback for New Jersey's EV adoption goals of 100% Zero-Emission New Car Sales by 2035. It removes Turnpike access to the most reliable (99.9% uptime), least congested (<1% waiters), and cost-effective (~30% lower $/kWh) charging."
In a May 30 post responding to a quote tweet from Tesla fan and Model Y owner Sawyer Merritt, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said that the NJTA's decision "sounds like corruption."
I do not own an EV, but I live in New Jersey, and while I observe that EV charging is very prevalent in many convenient places adjacent to major highways, including shopping malls like the infamous American Dream mall, large retail centers where Walmarts and Targets are located, and non-service-area roadside stops like Wawas, I view the loss of Superchargers on the Turnpike as a bit of a disservice to EV owners.
The New Jersey Turnpike is a major thoroughfare connecting two major Northeastern cities, New York and Philadelphia. Many drivers who travel on it pass through with a further destination in mind, and the faster out of Jersey, the better.
It's not just Teslas that charge at Superchargers. So far, Ford, GM, Rivian, Volvo, Polestar, Hyundai, and Genesis are just some of the manufacturers that support it, with others like Honda and Acura soon to have that capability. Though one may view Tesla Supercharging as anything but universal, as someone who has had to wait upwards of hours in line to charge non-Tesla EVs at "universal stations," keeping the Superchargers where they were would help ease any potential congestion these Applegreen chargers will have. Trust me, there will be congestion. The service areas on the Turnpike have Shake Shacks, Dunkins, and Popeyes now.
Elon Musk Cries 'Corruption' as Tesla Superchargers Disappear from Key US Route first appeared on Autoblog on Jun 3, 2025
This story was originally reported by Autoblog on Jun 3, 2025, where it first appeared.
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