Viktor Musil
North Carolina has announced the first locations to receive government funding under the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure NEVI program, aimed at expanding EV charging capacity across the state. With a $109 million allocation from the federal government, the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) awarded $5.92 million in the first round to install fast chargers at nine sites, including rural and small-town locations such as Piggly Wiggly in Leland, Firehouse Subs in Elizabeth City, and Pilot Travel Centers in Warsaw and Candor. The program focuses on ensuring charging stations are available every 50 miles along major highways, such as Interstates 40, 77, and 485, and U.S. Highways 17, 70, 74, and 64. The initiative aims to combat “range anxiety” by providing reliable charging options in underserved areas, promoting EV adoption, and reassuring potential EV buyers. Each station will feature DC fast chargers capable of charging vehicles in 20 minutes, alongside Level 2 chargers for longer charging needs. The NEVI program is a significant step toward building a comprehensive EV charging network in North Carolina, benefiting both rural and urban communities.
In accordance with a national program designed to bridge the lack of charging capacity in North Carolina, the state has chosen the first locations to receive NEVI program to install chargers for electric vehicles.
In accordance with a national program designed to bridge the lack of charging capacity in North Carolina, the state has chosen the first locations to receive government funding to install chargers for electric vehicles.In mostly small towns and rural areas where the private sector has n’t installed chargers on its own, they include travel centers, shopping plazas, and a sub shop along highways. The National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure or, NEVI or, program’s objective is to help ensure that all communities have access to EV chargers and lessen concerns about power outages on extended trips.
The NEVI, which was passed by Congress in the late 2021, gave the N. C. Department of Transportation$ 109 million. NCDOT looked for proposals from businesses that would install and run EV chargers with government support by finding corridors where they were needed.
North Carolina Awards $5.92 Million for New Fast-Charging EV Stations Along Key Highways
The first round of awards, announced Wednesday, entire$ 5.92 million and will help businesses to install fast-chargers in nine places along Interstates 40, 77 and 485 and U.S. highways 17, 70, 74 and 64. They include a Piggly Wiggly in a Leland shopping center, a Firehouse Subs shop in Elizabeth City, and Pilot Travel Centers in Warsaw and Candor. There’s even one cosmopolitan location: Northlake Mall, near where I-77 and I-485 cross north of Charlotte.
DC hard chargers with four ports that can charge an SUV or car in about 20 minutes will be provided for each station.
NCDOT expects to award grants for about 40 more of these stations to ensure there are EV chargers at least every 50 miles along main highways in North Carolina.
“Later, we’ll have publicly funded EV chargers that fill in coverage gaps along our main corridors in the state and in our communities”, Joey Hopkins, the secretary of Transportation, said in a statement. We want a network that is trustworthy and available to both in rural and urban areas.
NEVI Program Eases Range Anxiety with New EV Charging Stations Across North Carolina
The NEVI program was created in part to help with what is known as “range anxiety,” the worry that an electric vehicle owner cannot travel to far from their home or an industrial area where charging stations are more prevalent.
According to Jacob Bolin of Advanced Energy, a volunteer energy consulting firm, it even makes non-EV owners feel more at ease with a technology and a fuel they’ve never used before.
If you see these charging stations in places where you’re driving and commuting, yet if you’re filling up with gasoline, I believe that will give people a sense of confidence about the possibility to drive and charge there, Bolin said in an interview.
In areas that are not yet served by the private sector, charging stations will be installed as part of NCDOT’s Polyp program. Fast chargers and Level 2 chargers, which take four to eight hours to fully charge a vehicle, will be used in combination.
