Indiana Working To Establish EV Charging Stations
An Electrify America charging station is located at Walmart’s east side store in Terre Haute. The chargers are open for public use 24 hours a day and feature 150 kilowatt and 350kW DC fast chargers. The superchargers, shown in this 2019 photograph, are among the type the state of Indiana intends to place along interstates across the state within the next five years. Photo by Howard Greninger.
Staff Report
Tribune-Star
TERRE HAUTE – Indiana is working to create a state electric vehicle implementation plan for federal review by Aug. 1, the first step in adding electric vehicle charging stations statewide.
The state expects to receive approval of its implementation plan by Sept. 30.
The Indiana Department of Transportation on Monday issued requests for information to provide comments and data for consideration in drafting the plan. Responses are due by 5 p.m. April 29 and may be sent to [email protected].
INDOT will accept requests for information questions until 5 p.m. on April 11 and will post questions and answers online by 5 p.m. on April 15.
INDOT will then contract with partners to build Level 3 DC Fast Charge charging stations along Indiana’s federally designated alternative fuel corridors.
Interstates across the state under the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program must have chargers installed first before other routes in the state receive charging stations.
Level 3 is the fastest type of charging available and can recharge an electric vehicle at a rate of 3 to 20 miles of range per minute. However, unlike Level 1 and Level 2 chargers that use alternating current, Level 3 charging stations use direct current, which makes them more expensive and not applicable for residential use.
INDOT is allocating about $14.7 million this year, with funds coming from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and expects to invest approximately $100 million for EV charging infrastructure over the next five years, according to INDOT.
Nationally, the federal government plans to install a network of at least 500,000 reliable chargers across the U.S. to support the growing adoption of electric vehicles.
In addition to the NEVI funding, the infrastructure law includes $2.5 billion in competitive grants available to eligible applicants, including state and local governments, and other groups for EV charging and alternative fuel infrastructure.
This article was made available through Hoosier State Press Association.
