PlugShare.com steers electric car owners to charging stations

Take charge — here’s a website and app that make life easier for owners of electric vehicles.

Name: PlugShare.com and app

What it does: A searchable website and app that shows more than 26,000 charging stations, shared residential chargers and high-power stations in the United States and Canada. It also includes more than 60,000 stations across the globe.

Available: Android and iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. Requires iOS 7.0 or later.

Cost: Free

What’s hot: It’s a myth that you can’t take a road trip in an electric car. You can turn to the PlugShare website and use its TripPlanner to search for charging stations along your route. Users post pictures of the stations, and the app has a vibrant “Activity” section where you can see users who’ve checked in and left tips. It even shows how long ago they were there. Click on the filter icon if you’d like to set your preferences.

What’s not: The app might need a little housekeeping. I came across a charging station with a photo of an “out-of-order” sign on it. It was the first photo on the page, but the photo was 2 years old and the comments showed that the station was working great. No big deal, but instead of ditching a location because of a less-than-favorable photo, make sure you check the dates and comments for the latest activity.