Author: editor

The Hawaii Department of Transportation officially opened its first electric vehicle or EV charging station partially funded by the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure or NEVI program on February 28.

[Above photo by Hawaii DOT]

The EV charging station at the Kahului Park & Ride on Maui consists of four 150 kW DC fast chargers with Combined Charging System and CHArge de MOve ports. The station – located along Route 380, also known as the Kuihelani Highway – cost $3 million to design and build, with $2.4 million coming from the NEVI program and $600,000 from the state’s highway fund.

“Providing drivers with the opportunity to choose alternatives to vehicles with traditional internal combustion engines is a critical part of the strategy to get Hawaii to a clean energy portfolio by 2045,” said Ed Sniffen, director of the Hawaii DOT, in a statement.

“When we began planning our department’s conversion to EVs we calculated an estimated annual reduction in CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions of 8,700 pounds per vehicle, which is roughly the amount of energy used by an average American home in half a year,” he added.

[Editor’s note: In June 2023, Hawaii DOT deployed the state’s very first autonomous all-electric passenger shuttle bus. Developed in collaboration with the University of Hawaii at Mānoa, the AV Star All-Electric Autonomous Min-E Bus is an Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant vehicle that can hold 14 passengers or 10 passengers and two passengers in wheelchairs. The vehicle is also equipped with the Perrone Robotics “TONY” system – short for “To Navigate to You” – autonomous system that Perrone said meets all Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.]

To qualify for NEVI funding, EV charging stations must meet criteria such as having EV charging publicly available 24/7 and being no more than one mile away from the nearest U.S. Department of Transportation-designated Alternative Fuel Corridor.

The Kahului Park & Ride along Kuihelani Highway was selected as the state’s first NEVI-funded EV charging site because it is accessible 24/7 and its location is adjacent to the Maui Alternative Fuel Corridors, the Hawaii DOT noted.

The agency added that EV charging will be free to the public at this location through March 10, as time-of-use rates are being finalized. Payment and charger availability can be checked through the EV Connect App at evconnect.com/ at that time, with payment via credit card also accepted at this EV charging locale, Hawaii DOT added.

Governor Andy Beshear (D) and Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt, along with several state and local officials, recently gathered at the Circle K convenience store and filling station in Richmond, KY, to break ground on the first electric vehicle (EV) fast charging station in the southeastern United States built with funds from the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program.

[Above photo by KYTC]

Developers of privately-owned fast charging stations, mandated to remain open to the public 24 hours a day, seven days a week, are obligated to finance a minimum of 20 percent of the construction and operational costs for the initial five years, while NEVI funding will cover the remaining expenses. At the event, the governor noted that his administration is also seeking proposals to install up to 16 additional stations along interstates and parkways statewide using NEVI funding – all part of Kentucky’s longer-term effort to add up to 40 new fast charging stations by 2025.

“To make sure Kentucky keeps leading the way, we’re building out our EV infrastructure so our families can charge up as they travel our great state,” Gov. Beshear said in a statement – noting that Kentucky is set to receive nearly $70 million from the NEVI program to accomplish that goal.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet is responsible for administering those NEVI funds and for building out the state’s EV recharging network.

“The number of registered EVs in Kentucky continues to grow, and we want to ensure current and future owners have a reliable network of charging stations to support long-distance EV travel,” said KYTC Secretary Jim Gray.

The Circle K Richmond location is one of two awarded sites Circle K will own and operate – becoming one of the fast-charging EV stations to be built across Kentucky.

That Circle K Richmond charging site will initially offer four 180 kilowatt fast chargers, each ready to recharge a typical EV in under 20 minutes. The units, initially equipped with standard Combined Charging System 1 connectors, will undergo upgrades to North American Charging Standard connectors later this year. This transition will occur after the finalization of national standards and UL certification to ensure support for all current and future EV makes and models.

“We’re very pleased to partner with the state in bringing EV fast charging to the commonwealth with the support of the NEVI program,” said Louise Warner, Circle K senior vice president of global fuels. “Partnerships like these are helping to accelerate the development of charging infrastructure to keep pace with growing demand and EV adoption.”

The Joint Office of Energy and Transportation or JOET – jointly operated by the U.S. Department of Transportation and U.S. Department of Energy – has issued $46.5 million in grants to 30 projects across 16 states and Washington, D.C, to help develop electric vehicle or EV infrastructure in rural, urban, and tribal communities as well as expand what it calls the “clean energy” workforce.

[Above image via the JOET]

The JOET added that this funding will also address barriers to charging in multifamily housing facilities, explore new approaches to curbside charging in urban areas, promote seamless connections across modes through e-mobility hubs, and test new incentive structures to provide affordable public charging access.

“[We are] proud to fund these game-changing clean transportation projects in communities across the country,” said Gabe Klein, the JOET’s executive director, in a statement.

“These investments ensure we can meet unique local needs, create good-paying jobs, innovate new business models, test products thoroughly, and work towards our goal of making it easy for everyone to ride and drive electric,” he added.

The JOET has also helped developed a variety of resources to help support the expansion of EV infrastructure across the country.

For example, in conjunction with the USDOT, the JOET helped issue a technical resource in July 2023 designed to aid larger communities take full advantage of federal funding for electric vehicle charging stations and other forms of electric transportation.

That guide – called “Charging Forward: A Toolkit for Planning and Funding Urban Electric Mobility Infrastructure” – provides a comprehensive resource for communities, metropolitan planning organizations, transportation providers, businesses, and property owners and developers by including information on how to scope, plan, and identify ways to best leverage billions of dollars in funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act or IIJA.

It follows on the heels of the Rural EV toolkit originally issued by the USDOT in 2022 and later updated in 2023. 

The toolkit builds on the efforts of the Joint Office to provide states and communities across America with information and assistance to accelerate an electrified transportation system that is convenient, affordable, reliable, and equitable. It also includes guidance to help urban areas implement other forms of electric transportation, such as public transit, electric bikes and scooters, and ride-share services, USDOT said.