More EV charging stations coming nationwide, electrifying 75K miles of highways
Enlarge (credit: Bloomberg / Contributor | Bloomberg)
For drivers choosing electric vehicles, convenient access to reliable charging stations remains one of the biggest pain points after adopting the eco-friendlier way to cruise. Just the thought of driving out of the way to find a charging station when planning road trips-rather than pop into a choice of many gas stations at any exit-deters so many drivers that it was starting to look like unreliable charging could be the deciding factor that could ultimately doom EVs.
Instead, the Department of Transportation and the Biden administration announced yesterday that America greenlit a plan to invest $5 billion over the next five years to create a more reliable charging network by installing EV chargers in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. The first wave of funding is available now, granting access to all states to "more than $1.5 billion to help build EV chargers covering approximately 75,000 miles of highway across the country."
"President Biden is leading the shift to electrify transportation-ensuring drivers can commute and charge confidently and affordably and lessening our oversized reliance on fossil fuels while combatting climate change," US Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm said in the press release.