Pa. House panel takes up electric vehicle charging infrastructure
By John L. Micek – Capital-Star
HARRISBURG, PA – Someday, charging stations for electric vehicles will be as common as roadside gas stations on America’s highways and byways.
At least that’s how state Rep. Mary Jo Daley, D-Montgomery, envisions a clean and green future for motorists across the commonwealth and nationwide.
But, Pennsylvania is not there yet, the suburban Philadelphia Democrat acknowledged as a state House panel took up the issue during Monday’s meeting of the House Democratic Policy Committee.
“I’ve personally experienced the scarcity of electric vehicle charging stations in Pennsylvania and the struggles that come along with it. With the growing number of electric vehicles being used in the commonwealth, we need to make sure electric vehicle charging stations are as available as gas stations,” Daley said in a statement.
While they still make up a fraction of the 12 million registered vehicles in the state, there are currently around 30,000 electric passenger vehicles on the road — that’s a tally that’s more than doubled over the last five years, the panel said in a statement.
The Keystone State is in line to receive $171.5 million under the federal infrastructure law over the next five years to build out its EV charging network, according to the U.S. Dept. of Energy, the Capital-Star reported in February.
The tally is the fifth-highest of any state, and it’s part of the Biden administration’s effort to encourage Americans to buy electric cars, WESA-FM in Pittsburgh reported earlier this year.
The state is slated to receive $25 million this year toward augmenting the state’s existing network of 1,078 public charging locations, the radio station reported. The White House is aiming to install electric vehicle charging stations every 50 miles along the nation’s major highways.
States have until Aug. 1 to submit their National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Plan to the feds, the House panel said in its statement. The state Department of Transportation is currently preparing that document.
“It is critical that Pennsylvania is positioned to receive and apply for all available EV federal funding opportunities and to assist communities and local partners to be successful for an effective and efficient rollout of EV initiatives,” Natasha Fackler, PennDOT’s infrastructure implementation coordinator, said in a statement.
“PennDOT is committed to providing EV awareness, education, and technical capacity to our partners, especially to support EV industry job skills, local small business development and educational opportunities for all job-levels,” Fackler continued.
