The Federal Highway Administration has approved the first 35 state plans to build EV charging stations along Interstate highways under the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure formula program. President Joe Biden made the announcement Wednesday at the Detroit Auto Show, saying “the great American road trip is going to be fully electrified.”
Approval of these state plans unlocks more than $900 million in NEVI formula funding from fiscal years 2022 and 2023 to help build EV chargers across approximately 53,000 miles of highway, according to the FHWA.
The NEVI program was created by 2021’s bipartisan infrastructure law. It provides $5 billion to states over five years to establish electric vehicle charging stations every 50 miles along the interstate highway system or within one mile of an interstate exit. All 50 states, along with the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, submitted plans.
In addition, the Biden administration on Thursday announced $1.5 billion in awards from the Infrastructure for Rebuilding America competitive grant program for highway, multimodal freight and rail projects. Among the projects to be funded are those in:
- Detroit, where a portion of Interstate 375 will be converted to a slower-speed boulevard, reconnecting neighborhoods that were divided by the current highway.
- Baton Rouge, Louisiana, which, in part, will convert an existing trail to a new, linear, multimodal pathway for pedestrians and bicyclists and other improvements.
- Washington County, Maine, to rehabilitate approximately 68 miles of U.S. Route 1 and prepare the corridor for electric vehicle chargers.
- Washoe County, Nevada, which will add two lanes along approximately three miles of U.S. Route 395 along with improved traffic control, interchange lighting upgrades, sound walls, and Intelligent Transportation System elements.
- Bronx, New York, where the Hunts Point Terminal Produce Market intermodal facility will be redeveloped with expanded refrigerated warehouse space and electric vehicle charging stations for trucks and cars.
Other awards under this program will go toward replacing or repairing highway and railroad bridges, highway improvements and funding for rail and port infrastructure projects.
In announcing the grants, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the investments will “improve the way Americans get around and help lower the costs of shipping goods.”
