1-23-2024 4:19am

FEDS BUY 58

$15M Federal Grant Sparks Plans for Statewide Expansion of Electric Vehicle Charging Stations

Maryland plans to use a $15 million federal grant to install 58 new electric vehicle charging stations around the state, focusing on underserved communities, Gov. Wes Moore and the state’s two U.S. senators announced on Friday, January 12, 2024.

The new EV infrastructure will add to a total of roughly 170,000 EV charging stations across the United States, according to U.S. Deputy Secretary of Transportation Polly Trottenberg, who was present for the announcement. President Joe Biden’s administration hopes to increase that number to half a million by 2026, years ahead of their original schedule.

“We as an administration are going to reject this false choice that says the transition to clean energy is either going to be effective or equitable — it’s going to be both,” said Moore. “We see a future that is greener, that’s cleaner, that’s more sustainable, that’s more prosperous, and it’s a future that sees everybody.”

Moore also highlighted a workforce development partnership with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers to create 600 new certified electricians who can service the charging stations.

Maryland Transportation Secretary Paul Wiedefeld said the state should reach 100,000 EV registrations by the end of January. Anthony L. Jenkins, president of Coppin State University, where the announcement was made, said that the EV chargers that would be installed at his institution’s campus and across the state represent “progress and motion.”

The grant funding represents the latest investment funneled to Maryland through Biden’s 2021 infrastructure bill. The trillion-dollar-plus legislation has poured money into the state for initiatives ranging from transit improvements and traffic calming to major railway upgrades.