The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) has announced funding for 12 new electric vehicle (EV) charging stations to be installed along Pennsylvania’s major roadways.
The funding will build upon US$54 million already invested into public charging stations across the state through The National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) programme.
Mike Carroll, PennDOT Secretary, said: “These projects will expand access to electric vehicle charging from our alternative fuel connections and bridge the gap between long-distance travel and community-based chargers.”
The first Pennsylvanian NEVI-funded charging station opened in December 2023 and has, according to the state’s statistics, supported more than 80,000 charging sessions and approximately over 9.6 million driven miles. The state government says that this has reduced CO2 emissions by over 2,000 metric tonnes.
Current awarded projects through the NEVI Corridor Connections programme include:
Berks County (US$825,958)
Bradford County (US$1.1 million)
Cambria County (US$1.9 million)
Lackawanna County (US$661,584)
Lancaster County (US$2.2 million)
Lehigh County (US$789,028)
Northampton County (US$789,028)
Perry County (US$525,474)
Tioga County (US$500,034)
Investing in EVs
To make information behind EVs more accessible to Pennsylvanians, PennDOT has released a video series titled EVs in Focus. This is part of the state’s wider investment into EV infrastructure.
Such investments include additional NEVI Community Charging Funding applications for the state’s south-eastern region, with western region applications anticipated to open in the coming weeks.
Furthermore, PennDOT has opened a survey for organisations to connect with EV charging station builders and operators to partner on Community Charging submissions.
Pennsylvania has been politically active in securing funding for reliable EV infrastructure, having joined 19 other states in a lawsuit against the federal government for the Trump administration’s withdrawal of a US$5 billion NEVI programme following the start of his second term.
On Pennsylvania’s EV initiatives, Mike Carroll added: “This is a critical step to improving relatability and access to meet the needs of EV drivers in the Commonwealth.”