A Tesla Semi at Tesla's California headquarters (not in Ocala). Photo by Steve Jurvetson, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Tesla Seeks to Add Semi-Truck Megachargers at the Pilot Off I-75 Exit 358 in Ocala
This is a business news article published on 2026-10-09 covering local Marion County, Florida news. Tesla has applied to install six Megacharger posts for electric semi trucks in the parking area of the Pilot Travel Center at 4255 W Hwy 326, near I-75 exit 358. The request went to Marion County's Development Review Committee on Sept. 28, 2026.
A Tesla Semi at Tesla's California headquarters (not in Ocala). Photo by Steve Jurvetson, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
What Tesla Proposes
The application, filed as waiver request WaiverSTA-001251-2026 on parcel 12946-002-00 with Pilot Travel Centers, LLC as the property owner, describes the work, according to the county filing:
- Six Megacharger posts and the AC/DC equipment that runs them, in the parking area of the site.
- New parking striping, concrete equipment pads and LED lighting.
- The site plan sheets show transformer pads, utility bollards and V4 Megacharger cabinets, with truck charging laid out along the lot.
Why It Went to the County
Marion County's land development code normally requires a major site plan revision for projects of this kind. Tesla asked the county's Development Review Committee to waive that requirement and let it use a building permit site plan instead, pointing to the site's existing Major Site Plan No. 18630. The item was on the committee's Sept. 28, 2026, agenda. The county's records had not posted an outcome as of Oct. 9.
The filing does not say when the chargers would open or whether they would be open to all Tesla Semi operators.
For electric-car charging in the area today, see our EV charging guide for Ocala. For other growth near the I-75 interchanges, see our story on the NW 49th Street gateway project near Buc-ee's.
Source: Marion County Development Review Committee, agenda item 6.3, Sept. 28, 2026 (Legistar file 26633, waiver request form and site plans). Checked Oct. 9, 2026.
Related Ocala Guides
More context and planning resources from Only In Ocala.