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Tesla Building EV Supercharger Station off Bedell Avenue
- Stevie Quilo
- Apr 28
- 3 min read
Del Rio’s first Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Station is under construction on the far side of Rudy's Country Store and Barbecue parking lot. Across from Walmart, off Bedell Avenue, there are 8 Tesla Gen-4 Superchargers. The onsite installation team confirmed the 8 supercharger stalls should be fully operational in 2-3 weeks. Station completion is expected mid-May. The land acquired was privately owned and commercially zoned, so the City of Del Rio has yet to become involved in the project.
Every new development project comes with upsides and downsides. Adding electric vehicle (EV) charging stations can help the city keep up with 21st century changing times. There are plenty of EV and hybrid vehicle owners already in Del Rio, the station fills an unmet need. Plus, it could serve as an important link for long-distance EV travelers, encouraging them to take a pit stop in Del Rio instead of a neighboring town. Drawbacks include added drain on the local power grid and high voltage heat related hazards.
A few standalone EV chargers are already scattered up and down Veteran’s Blvd, but this will be the first true gas-station-like “EV charging station” with multiple charging stalls. Although Tesla chargers were originally designed for Tesla customers, they have been made accessible to the majority of other EV models, like Nissan, Toyota, Dodge, or Ford. According to Tesla, any new EV with a built-in North American Charging Standard (NACS) connector should be able to directly plug in, however, older EV models might probably require a plug adapter.
Customers must pay to plug. Regional cost comparisons estimate $25 or $30 or more, per charge, to “fill up the tank.” Tesla buys the power from the city and resells it at a higher rate. Power is pulled directly from existing city power lines, is then converted, monitored, metered, and delivered by Tesla hardware. The main energy source comes from the grid, but as a supplemental power source at some of their stations, a solar panel canopy is installed over top.
The station includes 8 charging stalls, each with their own dedicated parking space. There are several separate “cabinets” to the side that house energy converters. Sometimes, large-scale lithium-ion batteries storage systems are also incorporated at charging stations.
Excessive heat build-up in battery cells and energy converters can lead to hazardous situations. However, the threat level seems similar to that of a gas station. Fuel and electricity are dangerous by nature. Safety measures should be taken around EV charging stations, just as they are safety measures are taken around gasoline fueling stations. The risks of this high-voltage technology include supercharged shocks, smoke, fires, or explosions. Therefore, temperature meters and multi-level cooling systems are built-in to help prevent heat build-up. Direct communication lines are wired in and provide system status updates and emergency alerts to company headquarters.
It also should be noted, the FBI issued a PSA on March 2 that included the following recommendation: “The FBI urges the public to exercise vigilance and to look out for suspicious activity in areas occupied by Tesla dealerships or Tesla-related entities.” People have reportedly been targeting Tesla products (like dealerships and charging stations). The FBI PSA provided context and explained that incidents involving “arson, gunfire, and vandalism” have occurred in at least 9 states since January 2025.
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