Why is it so hard to find chargers for electric cars? Utility regulations are partly to blame.

The millions of drivers behind the wheel of an electric vehicle — an estimated 18.7 million by 2030, up from a mere 1 million in 2018 — could upend a staple of the American landscape and local economies: the gas station.

That's thanks to the confluence of existing regulations that affect the price of electricity, the way gas stations make money, where EV owners live and how they charge up. Today, most EV owners charge their vehicles at home using slower Level 2 chargers. Those without that capability, or drivers headed a long distance who need to charge along the way, can head to a charging station with a faster commercial Level 3 charger — typically located in a shopping center or apartment parking lot and only sometimes at a gas station.