First Federally Funded EV Charging Station Opens in Ohio

First NEVI-funded EV charging station opens in London, Ohio. Federal goal of 500,000 public chargers by 2030 on track.

The National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program, a part of the 2021 infrastructure spending package, recently celebrated the opening of the first electric vehicle charging station in London, Ohio. This milestone was made possible through a partnership between General Motors, EVgo, and Pilot Travel Center, with plans to install a total of 500 chargers at Pilot and Flying J locations.

The ambitious goal set by the federal government is to have 500,000 publicly available chargers across the country by 2030. As of March 2024, four states - Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania, and Hawaii - have already opened charging stations with NEVI funding. The Biden administration has expressed confidence in the progress of the national charging plan, with upcoming stations in Maine, Vermont, and Colorado, as well as other states making significant strides in their projects.

During the CoMotion Miami conference in May, Gabe Klein, the executive director of the federal Joint Office of Energy and Transportation, highlighted the current ratio of 28.5 vehicles per public charger in the United States, which is in line with the government's 2030 target. Klein emphasized the importance of expanding the charging infrastructure to encourage more people to transition to electric vehicles comfortably.

In a further effort to support the growth of EV adoption, the administration announced an additional $623 million in grants for state, local, and tribal governments to enhance their EV charging networks. Additionally, the Department of Transportation has allocated $149 million to repair or replace existing EV chargers, ensuring the sustainability and accessibility of the charging infrastructure.