US govt wants to cover 75,000 miles of highway with EV charging

In the United States, there is a nationwide effort to ramp up the adoption of electric vehicles, with states creating ambitious plans to ban the sale of gas-powered vehicles. To assist in this effort, the Biden Administration announced the Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Deployment Plan for all 50 states has been approved.

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The effort is designed to install EV chargers across 75,000 miles of highway spread across the US. The bipartisan infrastructure law aims for a charging station every 50 miles, with states able to select where these chargers are located. These chargers must be fast, able to recharge a vehicle's battery in 15 to o45 minutes, based on which car model is being serviced.

US states have access to $1.5 billion of a total $5 billion in funding designed for building EV charges over the next five years. Each charging station must have at least four fast-speed plug-ins and non-proprietary chargers able to connect to any type of EV.

As noted by Pete Buttigieg, US Transportation Secretary, in a press statement:

"America led the original automotive revolution in the last century, and today, thanks to the historic resources in the President's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we're poised to lead in the 21st century with electric vehicles. We have approved plans for all 50 States, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia to help ensure that Americans in every part of the country - from the largest cities to the most rural communities-can be positioned to unlock the savings and benefits of electric vehicles."

The fear of running out of a charge and being unable to power back up is a serious roadblock to EV mass adoption.

In the US, the transportation sector is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions, though there is a more dedicated effort to get zero-emission vehicles on the road. Ensuring new EV drivers can easily find a location with open chargers is important, especially for drivers making longer trips.