Jeff Aslan

October 21, 2011

On Wednesday, October 19, ten states in the Northeast announced a collaborative effort to advance a network for electric vehicles (EVs). The Northeast Electric Vehicle Network, funded by a $1 million dollar grant from the Department of Energy, will seek to design and install charging stations throughout the region and attract private capital towards investing in EV infrastructure.

The transportation sector currently accounts for 30 percent of the Northeast region's greenhouse gas emissions. EVs reduce emissions by switching away from petroleum to cleaner grid-fed electricity that is increasingly being produced from renewable sources.

One of the primary barriers to widespread use of EVs is the lack of charging infrastructure. EVs have a limited range before they need to be recharged. A dearth of charging ports away from home has scarred many consumers away from purchasing an EV. However, the network is working on strategically placing chargers at public locations such as commuter rail stations and grocery stores where an owner can conveniently charge their car while commuting or shopping. One of the questions that the network will grapple with is whether to install fast charging stations or slower stations. Fast stations can charge a battery in 15 minutes, but cost 10 times as much as slower stations, which take about three or four hours to charge.

The network's mission is not limited to advancing physical infrastructure: it is tasked with building "the partnerships and connections necessary for a successful transition to cleaner and more efficient EV transportation choices." Towards that end, it will seek to educate the public about EVs, attract private capital, analyze the impact of EV charging on the electric grid, ease the permitting process for installing EV chargers, and advocate for federal policies supporting EVs.

The ten states participating in the network are Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont. The Northeast region is ideally suited for such a program because of the relatively short distances between cities and states. When fully implemented, the EV network will allow a driver to travel throughout the Northeast without any emissions from their vehicle.

Sources:

Northeast, mid-Atlantic states form regional network to promote electric vehicles, Wash. Post, Oct.19, 2011, www.washingtonpost.com/local/northeast-mid-atlantic-states-form-regional-network-to-promote-electric-vehicles/2011/10/19/gIQAPEACyL_story.html

Agreement of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic States to Develop a Northeast Electric Vehicle Network and Promote Alternative Transportation Fuels (2011), available at http://www.georgetownclimate.org/sites/default/files/Northeast%20EV%20Network%20Agreement.pdf