State Looks To Get EV Charging $$$ On The Street
Healey Announced $50 Million EV Charging Initiatives in February
Mindful that convenient charging is a factor in getting people to give up gas-powered cars, state officials are accepting feedback this month as they develop requests for proposals for a pair of high-dollar electric vehicle charging initiatives.
The Healey administration in February announced plans to invest $50 million in EV charging infrastructure using four programs. Responses to a Massachusetts Clean Energy Center notice of intent pertaining to two of those programs are due by April 26.
About $12.5 million would help municipalities expand access to overnight curbside charging for residents with limited access to home charging, particularly in environmental justice and urban communities. Pole-mounted and streetlight chargers are a “promising strategy to use existing assets to expand access to curbside charging, but this potential is limited by barriers such as regulatory hurdles, complex ownership structures and unclear business and financial models,” according to the state.
An $8 million program will be geared toward the ride-for-hire fleet, with a focus on environmental justice communities where a high percentage of transportation network company drivers live. Studies in California show that while TNC drivers make up less than 3 percent of EV drivers, they account for more than 40 percent of all public fast charger use.
The clean energy center says the feedback it receives this month will inform the RFPs for each program, which will be released in May. The programs rely on funding received by the state under the American Rescue Plan Act.
The state’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Coordinating Council was authorized in 2022 and in August 2023 provided its initial assessment to the Legislature. It takes longer to charge up an electric vehicle than it does to gas up a car. According to the council, an electric car plugged in to a regular 110-V outlet (Level 1 plug) will gain about three miles of range of charge in an hour of charging, 25 miles of charge in an hour while plugged into a 240-V outlet (Level 2 plug), and about 200 miles of charge in an hour while plugged in to a 150- kW fast charger (also known as a direct current fast charger, or DCFC).
