Anyone who's had the privilege of refueling a pickup truck or SUV while towing a camping trailer will be happy to share tales of the difficulties that come with it. Even assuming your combined assemblage can maneuver the tight corners that define many a gas station, any trailer is likely to block either a second gas pump or the pathways around them, thus inspiring frustration from other drivers.
Trying to charge an electric vehicle while using it to tow opens up another circle of hell. Most fast chargers are designed for vehicles to orient themselves perpendicular to them when in use, not parallel like gas pumps; this means that any trailer mounted astern is likely to stick well out into traffic, and possible restrict vehicles' access to other fast chargers, as well. (And that's not to mention that many EVs have their charging ports located near the back of the vehicle, making it almost impossible to recharge without disconnecting any trailer and parking it somewhere.)
That's not likely to get any better as the camper industry goes electric. More and more camping trailers will pack their own large-scale batteries and even propulsion motors of their own, in order to lessen the burden on the tow vehicle — see the Pebble Flow for a good example of this — but that will mean the trailer will also need to recharge on long trips, requiring a second charging station.
So as you can imagine, recharging electric tow vehicles and electrified travel trailers stands to be even more of a PITA (and I'm not talking about the bread). But that might not be the case if Airstream parent company Thor Industries can bring their new electric RV/camper charging concept to reality.
As originally spotted by New Atlas, the station concept, as seen here, is presented as something of a cross between a gas station and a high-end rest stop. The lanes between charging stations are wide enough to easily accommodate two Airstreams side by side, and there's more than ample space outside the charging area for truck-and-trailer combinations to maneuver about. As you can see in the image at the top of the post, the charger islands are well-suited to recharging both electric tow vehicles and electric travel trailers at the same time, offering gas station-style parallel access. (There are also more traditional perpendicular stations for EVs who've dropped their campers off elsewhere, or who simply would rather charge here rather than in the back end of a Walmart parking lot.)
Of course, even with modern fast charging stations pumping out electrons at 150 kW or more, powering up the likes of a Ford F-150 Lightning or Rivian R1T takes a good deal more time than refueling a gas-powered truck. To help pass the time, Thor's charging plaza concept bakes in a good amount of human-centric amenities, such as restrooms, playgrounds, picnic tables and, in a move that suggests the company may think too highly of us, fitness equipment.
Thor Industries — which, I should stop to say, is a name that goes very well with electric vehicle charging stations — said in a press release that it's aiming to expand EV charging access in rural areas conducive to camping and other outdoor activities; appropriately, the concept depicts a station alongside a forest on a state highway.
"We designed this concept to provide states and rural communities a better understanding of the infrastructure needed near parks, destination towns and other popular destinations to retain the tremendous economic benefits future RV travelers will offer," Thor Industries president and CEO Bob Martin said in a statement. "Electrified transportation will play a central role in the future of RVing as [electric recreational vehicles] become available for purchase ... A charging station ecosystem that can accommodate eRVs and EV tow vehicles is essential to this transformation."
Sadly, Thor didn't make any note as to when – or even officially if — the company would be bringing this charging station concept to reality. Still, with many automakers now following in Tesla's footsteps and creating their own bespoke fast-charging stations and networks in order to provide a better experience for owners, creating something along the lines of this setup that's tailor-made for Airstreams and Thor's (shockingly numerous) other RV/camper brands seems like a great way to encourage buyers to adopt and use new, more environmentally friendly trailers — in other words, an obvious win all around.
