Electric Vehicles

The Federal Highway Administration, along with the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation, recently issued a Request for Information or RFI regarding electric vehicle (EV) charging technologies and infrastructure needs for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles.

[Above image by FHWA]

That RFI seeks input in four areas to support medium- and heavy-duty electric vehicles: 1) unique EV charger and station needs; 2) vehicle charging patterns; 3) charging technology and standardization, and; 4) workforce, supply chain, and manufacturing to support charging of medium- and heavy-duty battery EVs in federal vehicle classes four through eight, which include delivery vans, school buses, semi-tractor trucks, fire trucks, dump trucks, and tour buses.

The agency said in a statement that this RFI will help inform how the federal government, including the Environmental Protection Agency and other agencies, can support the development and timely build-out of a national EV charging network that balances the needs of rapidly evolving technology and infrastructure investments in freight and a multimodal transportation system.

In the National Blueprint for Decarbonization, the FHWA said the Biden administration aims to have 30 percent of new medium- and heavy-duty vehicle sales in the United States be zero-emissions by 2030, and 100 percent by 2040.

Comments must be received on or before November 12, FHWA said, though late-filed comments will be considered to the extent practicable.

The Rhode Island Department of Transportation recently helped host a ribbon-cutting event at the Route 117 Park & Ride in Warwick to celebrate Rhode Island becoming the first state in the nation to complete Phase 1 of the alternative fuel corridor established by the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure or NEVI formula funding program.

[Above photo by AASHTO]

The $5 billion NEVI program and $2.5 billion Charging and Fueling Infrastructure or CFI discretionary grant program – both funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act or IIJA – seek to help states build out a network of EV chargers across the country.

The Federal Highway Administration approved all the EV charging plans submitted by the states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia in September 2022 and RIDOT noted that Rhode Island has been allocated a total of $22.9 million from the NEVI program over a five-year period to support construction of EV chargers. 

“The completion of NEVI Phase 1 marks a milestone moment in Rhode Island’s commitment to a greener and more sustainable future, “said Governor Dan McKee (D) in a statement.

“By creating the infrastructure for cleaner transportation alternatives, we’re not only working towards our ‘Act on Climate’ goals but leading the charge to decrease our carbon footprint,” he said. “I’m grateful to the private and public partners who came together on this project that demonstrates our state’s continued commitment to enhancing our state’s EV charging infrastructure and the green economy.”

Currently, there are a total of eight Level 3 Direct Current Fast Chargers or DCFCs and six Dual-Port Level 2 charging stations strategically located along the Alternative Fuel Corridor on Interstate 95 in Rhode Island.

That network of highway-adjacent EV chargers offers efficient and convenient recharging options that enable EV users to embrace EV travel with confidence, explained Peter Alviti, RIDOT’s director, at the event.

“Rhode Island is ahead of the curve in providing the infrastructure for not only electric vehicles but also plug-in hybrid electric vehicles,” he explained.

“With the completion of phase one, and with our coordinating charging stations in Massachusetts and Connecticut, we can proudly say that electric vehicle owners can cross our state with confidence,” Alviti added. “And we can say that our infrastructure gives potential EV purchasers a reason to buy and drive EVs and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles.”

RIDOT noted that it plans to begin work on Phase 2 of the NEVI program this fall, further expanding EV charging infrastructure across public roads and other accessible locations statewide.

The Federal Highway Administration has unveiled a second notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) for electric vehicle or EV charging and alternative fuel vehicle or AFV infrastructure projects along designated highways, interstates, and major roadways. 

[Above photo by FHWA]

This new $1.3 billion opportunity is comprised of funds from the $2.5 billion Charging and Fueling Infrastructure or CFI discretionary grant program – activated in March 2023 – and a 10 percent set-aside from the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure or NEVI formula program, launched in February 2022.

Together, FHWA said those programs are actively deploying EV chargers and AFV refueling sites across the country. Eligible entities for funding from those two programs include states, metropolitan planning organizations, local governments, port authorities, Native American tribes, U.S. territories, and more.

The agency added that this funding opportunity offers up to $800 million in funding for newly submitted applications and reserves an additional $521 million for previously received applications, for a total of $1.3 billion available. FHWA said new applications for round two funds are due by August 28, with notices requesting reconsideration of past applications due by July 1.

The agency added that it plans to conduct outreach to potential grant applicants regarding the CFI program via webinars and will provide direct technical assistance to support states and communities as they build EV projects with CFI funds.

Webinars to share information about the NOFO will be held on the following dates:

• Webinar 1 – CFI Grant NOFO Overview: Thursday, June 6, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm ET – Click here to register.
• Webinar 2 – CFI NOFO Overview: Reconsideration of Round 1 Applications: Tuesday, June 11, from 1:00 to 1:30 pm ET – Click here to register.

State departments of transportation in particular have been working to construct EV recharging stations with CFI and NEVI funds over the last several years. Those efforts include:

• The California Department of Transportation – known as Caltrans – received some $63.7 million from FHWA to fix and install more than 1,000 chargers at 300 sites statewide.
• The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation plans to repair or replace dozens of existing EV charging sites using a $5 million federal award. The agency also oversaw the completion and opening of Pennsylvania’s first federally-funded EV charging station in late December 2023.
• The Utah Department of Transportation announced plans in December 2023 to double the state’s current fast charging capacity for electric vehicles by the end of 2024 with the addition of 15 new sites funded through the NEVI Formula Program.
• The Ohio Department of Transportation also opened its very first NEVI-funded EV charging locale for operation in December 2023.
• The New York State Department of Transportation is getting $13 million from FHWA to enhance the reliability of EV charging ports across the state.
• The Arizona Department of Transportation began seeking bids from private entities in January to build or upgrade EV charging stations along several interstate highways.
• The Oregon Department of Transportation is spending $1.75 million to help companies, schools, apartment building owners, small towns, and other groups build 370 new public Level 2 electric vehicle or EV charging ports in rural and disadvantaged areas.
• The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet broke ground on the first NEVI-funded EV fast charging station in the southeastern United States in February. The agency is currently 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.
• The Illinois Department of Transportation began providing up to $50 million in NEVI funds for the construction of 46 EV charging stations statewide in March.
• Also in March, the Virginia Department of Transportation allocated $11.3 million in NEVI funding to assist in the statewide construction of EV charging stations.
• In April, the Oklahoma Department of Transportation awarded more than $8 million in federal funds to Love’s Travel Stops, Francis Energy LLC, and Tesla Inc. to build 13 charging stations along Oklahoma interstates.

The Hawaii Department of Transportation recently launched a new autonomous all-electric passenger shuttle pilot program that will augment the existing Wiki Wiki shuttle bus service at the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport.

[Above photo by Hawaii DOT]

The 18-month pilot project will test out a new fleet of “Miki” autonomous shuttles – the Hawaiian word for “agile” – along with support services and software; all supplied by Beep, Inc.

Each Miki shuttle can hold 11 passengers, including the shuttle attendant, and can accommodate one wheelchair. The shuttles will operate at a maximum speed of 10 miles per hour.

While the Miki shuttles will be driven autonomously, Hawaii DOT said an attendant will be on board at all times to serve as ambassador for the new shuttle pilot project and to educate riders on how Miki operates and the service offered at the airport.

Shuttle attendants are trained on the autonomous shuttle’s safety features and can take over manually at any time by utilizing a controller on board, the agency noted.

Ed Sniffen, Hawaii DOT director, added in a statement that this project seeks to evaluate ways to increase overall efficiency of intra-airport transportation service, with two Miki autonomous buses operating on a “robust service schedule” along the same route as the Wiki Wiki buses between the C and G gates and Terminals 1 and 2.

“We are proud to launch the Miki shuttle service which will provide additional convenience for our airport users,” Sniffen noted. “The autonomous electric vehicles add to our ongoing progress to transition our vehicle fleet to electric vehicles and will help meet the state’s sustainability goals.”

This pilot project is made possible through the state’s infrastructure as a service contract with Sustainability Partners, which Hawaii DOT said enables it and other interested state and county agencies to procure electric vehicles and charging infrastructure on a per-mile cost basis.

This pilot program complements a similar effort Hawaii DOT spearheaded in June 2023 in collaboration with the University of Hawaii at Mānoa; the launch of the school’s first autonomous electric passenger shuttle as part of its Rainbow Shuttle service to transport students and staff around campus.

The Oklahoma Department of Transportation is moving forward with the first phase of an effort to expand electric vehicle or EV infrastructure statewide.

 [Above photo by Oklahoma DOT]

The agency awarded more than $8 million in federal funds to Love’s Travel Stops, Francis Energy LLC, and Tesla Inc. to build 13 charging stations along Oklahoma interstates. Those three firms will also contribute a combined $7 million in private funding to construct those charging facilities. Through this public-private partnership, the private partners will design, build, operate, and maintain the charging stations and should have them open for business by 2025.

The agency said those stations will be within 50 miles of preexisting or planned sites in designated corridors, equipped with at least four charging ports capable of simultaneous 150 kilowatt (kW) or higher charging, accessible 24/7/365, and have broadband or cellular capability.

Once installed, these 13 stations will complete the EV charging corridors on I-35, I-40 and I-44 in Oklahoma, said Jared Schwennesen, multimodal division engineer for Oklahoma DOT.

“Range anxiety is a real concern for electric vehicle owners here in Oklahoma and nationwide,” he explained in a statement. “We believe this will be a major step toward cutting down on that anxiety and providing a reliable charging network across Oklahoma.”

The Oklahoma DOT noted that the federal money it has issued to build and support those EV charging stations comes from the $5 billion National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure or NEVI formula program, established by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act or IIJA.

Other state departments of transportation across the country are engaged in similar efforts.

In March, the Virginia Department of Transportation allocated $11.3 million in federal funding to assist in the statewide construction of EV charging stations that would also help close existing alternative fuel corridor gaps along I-64, I-77, I-81, I-85, I-95, and I-295.

The Illinois Department of Transportation also recently released the first official notice of funding opportunity for round one of grants sponsored by NEVI program funding; grants that will provide up to $50 million for the construction of 46 charging stations across the state.

Other state DOT EV charging network initiatives include:

• The California Department of Transportation – known as Caltrans – received some $63.7 million from the Federal Highway Administration to fix and install more than 1,000 chargers at 300 sites statewide.
• The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation plans to repair or replace dozens of existing EV charging sites using a $5 million federal award. The agency also oversaw the completion and opening of Pennsylvania’s first federally-funded EV charging station in late December 2023 and is now making $20 million in NEVI funding available to build more new EV charging facilities.
• The Ohio Department of Transportation also opened its very first NEVI-funded EV charging locale for operation in December 2023.
• The New York State Department of Transportation is getting $13 million from FHWA to enhance the reliability of EV charging ports across the state.
•  The Arizona Department of Transportation began seeking bids from private entities in January to build or upgrade EV charging stations along several interstate highways.
• The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet broke ground on the first NEVI-funded EV fast charging station in the southeastern United States in February. The agency is currently 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.

The Virginia Department of Transportation said it has allocated $11.3 million in federal funding to assist in the statewide construction of electric vehicle or EV charging stations.

[Above photo by Virginia DOT]

The agency added in a statement that this funding will also help close existing alternative fuel corridor gaps along I-64, I-77, I-81, I-85, I-95, and I-295.

That $11.3 million is the first allotment under Phase 1-A of its statewide effort over the next four years to distribute $100 million worth of National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure or NEVI formula program funding; money that will help facilitate the deployment of third-party owned and operated EV charging stations at 18 sites across 13 counties, adding a total of 66 fast charging ports.

Notably, Virginia DOT said 14 of those charging stations are located within a half-mile of federally designated disadvantaged communities. Proposed locations were screened against federal requirements, with awardees selected through a competitive scoring process that evaluated location, station cost, level of applicant match funding, applicant qualifications, nearby amenities such as restrooms, dining, and shopping, and other customer experience-focused factors.

Other state departments of transportation across the country are engaged in similar efforts.

For example, the Illinois Department of Transportation recently released the first official notice of funding opportunity for round one of grants sponsored by NEVI program funding; grants that will provide up to $50 million for the construction of 46 charging stations across the state.

The Illinois NEVI program aims to accelerate the adoption of EVs by providing reliable access to charging on Illinois interstates and is part of a series of comprehensive initiatives to achieve the state’s goal of becoming a leader in manufacturing and deploying electric vehicles.

“This funding opportunity puts us one step closer to achieving [our state’s] goal to have one million EVs on Illinois roads by 2030,” said Illinois DOT Secretary Omer Osman in a statement.

Meanwhile, other state DOTs are deploying federal funds to either expand EV charger networks along highways under their purview or upgrade existing systems. Those initiatives include:

• The California Department of Transportation – known as Caltrans – received some $63.7 million from the Federal Highway Administration to fix and install more than 1,000 chargers at 300 sites statewide.
• The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation plans to repair or replace dozens of existing EV charging sites using a $5 million federal award. The agency also oversaw the completion and opening of Pennsylvania’s first federally-funded EV charging station in late December 2023.
• The Ohio Department of Transportation also opened its very first NEVI-funded EV charging locale for operation in December 2023.
• The New York State Department of Transportation is getting $13 million from FHWA to enhance the reliability of EV charging ports across the state.
•  The Arizona Department of Transportation began seeking bids from private entities in January to build or upgrade electric vehicle or EV charging stations along several interstate highways.
• The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet broke ground on the first NEVI-funded EV fast charging station in the southeastern United States in February. The agency is currently 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.

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.”