A: When you enroll to be a Triton Charger, you are signing up to be a research subject in the SCALedEV project. The project includes randomized controlled trials in which we will send you information about your charging options or offer you rebates for charging on campus and then observe how charging decisions shift.
For you, this involves:
- An initial enrollment survey (24 questions) where you will provide your PowerFlex email and ChargePoint ID number, and brief (3 question) follow-ups about twice per month.
- A digital consent form allowing us to access data on your EV charging sessions (e.g. plug-in and out times, energy use, etc.).
- Agreeing to receive, at most, one email and one text message per week with information about charging options or rebates.
You will also occasionally be invited to participate in new or additional studies related to EV charging, with no requirement or expectation that you do so.
A: The first phase of the SCALedEV project ran during the Spring 2023, Fall 2023 and Winter 2024 quarters. New randomized controlled trials are planned for calendar years 2025–26, with a pause during summer months. Club enrollment and recruitment will remain open.
A: The Triton Chargers are a club of EV drivers who participate in research, providing key information about how drivers interact with the charging network to inform peer-reviewed scientific research conducted by UC San Diego faculty. All research activities are approved by the campus Institutional Review Board, which oversees human subjects research. Participants receive a 20% discount on Level-2 charging, automatic entry in monthly raffles and the opportunity to participate in additional quarterly prize drawings.
The campus EV Charging Club, run by UC San Diego Transportation Services, has been purely operational. Originally, it managed the discount program, but it is now being phased out. Drivers have the option of enrolling in the Triton Chargers club, which provides similar discounts along with extra incentives and information during experiments.
A: Our study protocol has been reviewed by the campus Institutional Review Board, which oversees human subjects research, and includes strong protections for your data and anonymity. To protect confidentiality, we will store all data securely and identify you only by an anonymous unique ID number. We will collect only necessary personal identifiers, including your name and email, and we will store those identifiers separately in a password protected spreadsheet accessible only by the two Principal Investigators.