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The Maryland Transit Administration or MTA – a division of the Maryland Department of Transportation – launched a “transition plan” in December 2021 to move its transit fleet to zero-emission bus or ZEB models as older diesel-fueled and hybrid buses reach the end of their useful life.

[Above photo by the MTA]

MTA said in a statement that this “incremental” ZEB transition process includes bus facility updates as well and is designed to meet the requirements of Maryland’s new Zero-Emission Bus Transition Act, which mandates all new buses procured for the state’s transit fleet be emission-free beginning in 2023.

The agency plans to launch its first ZEB pilot program in 2023, when seven new battery-electric 40-foot and 60-foot articulated buses arrive at its Kirk Division, with that division’s facility expected to become a 100 percent electric bus facility by the end of 2026. The Northwest Division, which will begin a retrofit in early 2025, will highlight the second phase of the ZEB program with electric buses arriving in 2026.

Meanwhile, MTA said its Eastern Division expects to start the reconstruction of its bus facility in 2026, which will be one of the few purpose-built zero-emission bus facilities in the U.S., and should start hosting ZEBs starting in 2028. Finally, beginning in 2030, MTA’s Bush Division will undergo similar ZEB infrastructure investments.

Purchase of the new buses for this pilot program and the infrastructure for charging them will utilize grant funding from the Low or No Emission Vehicle Program from the Federal Transit Administration, and the Volkswagen Settlement.

Per targets identified in the Central Maryland Regional Transit Plan and guided by the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction Act Plan by the Maryland Department of the Environment, MTA has established several overall goals in undertaking the transition to a ZEB fleet. The agency has committed to converting 50 percent of its bus fleet to zero-emission by 2030 while seamlessly providing reliable, efficient service throughout the transition and beyond.

Some $52 million of additional funding over the next five years should flow to Oregon for investment in electric vehicle or EV charging infrastructure. That money comes from the $1.2 billion in additional transportation funding Oregon will receive from the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act signed in to law in November.

[Above photo by the Oregon DOT]

The Oregon Department of Transportation said the federal government makes the initial decisions on how to spend that $52 million, with the agency expecting to receive its first set of federal guidelines for that EV funding by February 2022.

Suzanne Carlson, director of the Oregon DOT Climate Office, said in a statement that her office expects those federal guidelines to steer that funding to Alternative Fuel Corridors, which are national highways that are eligible for federal grant funding to add public EV charging and other alternative fuel infrastructure. Oregon has seven corridors designated under the program: Intestates 5, 84 and 82, and U.S. 26, 101, 20 and 97.

Public-private partnerships will be a key component of Oregon’s EV investment strategy, the agency said, pointing to previous examples such as its investment of $4.1 million earlier this year to support EV charging upgrades to Oregon’s slice of the West Coast Electric Highway.

Oregon DOT also collaborated with local firm Forth, Kittelson & Associates along with the Rocky Mountain Institute to complete a future electrification needs study in 2020-21, which examined Oregon’s EV charging needs over the next 15 years. That study presents a “clear roadmap” for the agency and its partners for electrifying the state’s transportation system for multiple types of vehicles, explained Carlson.

According to data tracked by Oregon DOT, state residents are adopting EVs at a “swift rate,” with new EV registrations in 2021 on track to increase by about 70 percent compared to 2020. “With the study’s findings, we can be more strategic and keep up momentum on EV adoption rates,” she said. “Our role will be to make targeted state investments, secure more federal grant funding, and make sure public EV charging is equitable and practical.”

The newly formed National Electric Highway Coalition – consisting of 51 investor-owned electric companies, an electric cooperative, and the Tennessee Valley Authority – seeks to build a national network of electric vehicle or EV fast-charging ports to allow the public to drive EVs with confidence along major U.S. travel corridors by the end of 2023.

[Above photo by USDOT]

That coalition, led by the Edison Electric Institute, estimates that the country will need more than 100,000 EV fast-charging ports to support some 22 million EVs expected to operate on U.S. roads in 2030. EEI added that its member companies have invested more than $3 billion in EV charging infrastructure projects and related customer programs to date.

“By merging and expanding the existing efforts underway to build fast-charging infrastructure along major travel corridors, we are building a foundational EV charging network that will help to encourage more customers to purchase an electric vehicle,” explained Tom Kuhn, EEI’s president, in a statement. “With the formation of the National Electric Highway Coalition, we are committed to investing in and providing the charging infrastructure necessary to facilitate electric vehicle growth and to helping alleviate any remaining customer range anxiety.”

“Addressing issues such as grid resiliency, energy demands for charging, and equitable rollout of charging infrastructure will be an integral part of a successful future for EVs in America,” added John Bozzella, president and CEO of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation.

“The National Electric Highway Coalition will support the EV transition by facilitating electric power industry engagement in transportation electrification across the country,” he said. “Electric companies, which are regulated by state commissions, can help leverage all funding sources, help fill the infrastructure gaps, and help manage the deployment of these chargers with a long-term view.”

Several state departments of transportation are involved in similar EV recharging efforts.

For example, an initiative launched in September to develop the nation’s first electric vehicle or EV wireless charging infrastructure on a public road is gearing up in Michigan – and the Michigan Department of Transportation will play a critical role in this new project.

The Inductive Vehicle Charging Pilot is a partnership between the Michigan Department of Transportation and the state’s Office of Future Mobility and Electrification that plans to deploy an electrified roadway system that would allow electric-powered buses, shuttles, and personal vehicles to recharge their battery systems while driving – enabling EVs to operate continuously without stopping to recharge.

In February, the California Department of Transportation finished installing 22 new “fast-charging” stations for EVs at nine locations along the state’s highway network.

The agency said the 22 Level 3 DC fast chargers deployed as part of this $4.5 million project provide an approximate 80 percent charge in 30 minutes to EVs with fast-charging capability. The units also feature “universal connectors” so they can re-charge all EVs on the market, including Teslas, with an adapter. Charging is free with no time limit, Caltrans added.