Federal funding to expand electric vehicle infrastructure across interstate highways and offer $2.5 billion in related grants may have an impact in Berks, according to PennDOT officials.
Under a federal infrastructure plan signed into law in November, Pennsylvania will receive $171 million over five years to create an uninterrupted network of rapid charging ports across the state’s interstate highways.
To accomplish that goal and be designated EV ready, interstate highways must be outfitted with charging stations near every exit and highway intersection, and no more than 50 miles apart, according to federal criteria.
PennDOT said efforts to build out “alternative fuel corridors” since 2016 have led to 692 interstate highways miles receiving EV ready status, and 1,081 miles with plans for EV expansion still pending, according to a press release last month.
Plans to further the state’s EV network buildup using the newly allocated funds are in the works and should be submitted this summer, said Jan Huzvar, PennDOT deputy communications director.
Huzvar said one highway slated for EV upgrading is Interstate 78, which passes through northern Berks County.
In addition, the federal infrastructure bill offers local municipalities, school districts, planning organizations and more the opportunity to apply for $2.5 billion in EV-related grants.
The grants provide funding for installing, operating, and maintaining EV infrastructure, as well as for initiatives like electrifying school bus fleets and funding EV battery manufacturing and recycling programs.
Those funds will be prioritized for investment in traditionally underserved communities, which could mean additional funding for Berks municipalities, Huzvar said.
Huzvar said PennDOT’s newly adopted EV equity principles are focused on making EVs more affordable and accessible in low-income and other underserved areas.
PennDOT has already provided funding for four EV charging stations installed for private workplace use in Berks, and similar projects are in the works, according to Huzvar.
Other state and local government programs have provided funding for several public-use charging stations.
A plan to build 16 charging stations on campus at Albright College received grants from the state Department of Environmental Protection’s Alternative Fuel Incentive Program, and the Berks County Community Foundation’s Met-Ed Sustainable Energy Fund.
Those grants covered $95,000 of the installation’s total cost of about $170,000. The charging stations should be ready for use in March, according to Albright officials.
In addition, an EV Level 2 charging station was installed last October outside the Muhlenberg Township building.
That station was entirely funded by the state’s PA Driving Forward EV Charging Rebate Program.
Berks has about a dozen of the state’s 1,082 charging stations, according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels Data Center.
PennDOT officials noted the number of electronic vehicles registered in the state has more than doubled since 2019, from about 9,700 to 23,000.
Source: Berkshire mont