Every year, more and more drivers are discovering the benefits of owning a Tesla. These all-electric vehicles run quiet, offer impressive performance, and eliminate the hassle (and money) involved in gas station visits. Threatening Tesla’s further dominance in the market, however, is a possible lack of EV charging stations.

There may be more EV chargers than gas stations in the UK, but it’s a different story in the U.S. Imagine taking a road trip in a Tesla, driving on a low charge, and stopping at the next pit stop without a charging station in sight. It’s definitely one reason that will make you rethink buying a Tesla.

Are there enough Tesla charging stations in America? Is Tesla taking measures to fix the problem? – or is the automaker focusing too much on other nonessentials like adding Zoom to Teslas?

We looked closely at the situation to see if things were really as bad as they seemed for Tesla owners and, potentially, the future of EVs in America.

The U.S. Cities Suffering From Charging Station Shortages

Tesla charging station
via Electrek

American city dwellers love Teslas. The U.S. Department of Energy reported in 2017 that plug-ins are growing in cities such as Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. Except many who live in cities are in apartments and condos and don't have a garage, which is where many Tesla owners charge their vehicles overnight. That means they depend on a high number of charging stations throughout the city.

In the same report, the Department of Energy measured the amount of DCFC stations – which charge in minutes – that exist across the same cities. While it found that San Francisco and San Jose had more than 100 DCFC stations per 1,000 square miles, Chicago and New York scored significantly lower, with only 16.8 and 15.7 respectively.

A Tesla can end up saving owners big bucks over time, but how can a driver benefit if there aren’t enough charging stations around?

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Tesla’s Supercharger Network Is Growing

Tesla super charger
via CNBC.com

One advantage Tesla has over other automakers is its Supercharger Network that benefits Model S and X owners (and Model 3 owners, for an extra cost). According to Forbes, Tesla has more than 7,600 supercharger points in North America.

Already, though, Tesla’s foothold in the market is being contested. Forbes reports that the total number of Tesla chargers in North America is 17.7k, while rival ChargePoint has almost 34k.

Tesla is going to have to make changes if it wants to continue remaining an industry leader.

RELATED: Does The New Tesla Roadster Even Still Matter?

Tesla Charging Stations And The Future

Tesla charging station
via Electrek

Tesla has already invested lots of money into building a network of charging stations. As of now, only Tesla vehicles can use them. Yet as more and more EVs populate the roads, Tesla may need to adapt to meet the public’s demand for juicing up vehicles.

Ford already rolled out North America’s largest electric vehicle charging network. Plus, Nissan LEAF owners benefit from EVgo’s large roaming EV network. Tesla has two ways they can approach the future. Either the automaker can continue to set up its own charging networks or else work with rival networks to meet its customers' needs.

We, like the rest of the car-buying public, look forward to seeing what Tesla does next.

NEXT: Why Pedestrian Safety Is Ruining Car Design

Sources: Forbes, nrel.gov