While electric vehicle technology improves and becomes less expensive for consumers, now is the time to build out a robust network of charging stations. This network should be considered a public good, just like service plazas with gas stations on the interstate highways and the federal highway system itself.

Charging stations are essential infrastructure.

{span}Right now, though, electric vehicles are in a catch-22. Many people won’t buy them because there aren’t enough charging stations. But few businesses (especially outside cities) can afford to build charging stations until many more people have EVs.{/span}

{span}The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provides $1.5 billion a year for five years to expand the country’s EV fast-charging station network. In Pennsylvania, that means $171.5 million and 150 charging stations across the state, filling gaps along major highways so drivers never have to go more than 50 miles to charge up. Fast-charging stations can get a battery to about 80% in half an hour.{/span}

{span}This shouldn’t be considered an act of federal favoritism toward electric vehicles at the expense of gas-powered ones. Rather, it’s a boost to allow the two types of cars to compete on par by closing one of the main gaps between them: ease of filling up.{/span}

{span}Right now, a third of Pennsylvania’s fast-charging stations, and two-thirds of the state’s fast-charging ports, are owned by Tesla and designed only for Tesla vehicles. The company has planned to update its Supercharger network so that all EVs can use them. The company should be considered a potential partner in expanding Pennsylvania’s network — both by upgrading current stations and building new ones.{/span}

{span}A potential snag in PennDOT’s plan is whether federal funds can be used to install charging stations at Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission-owned service plazas. Especially in rural south-central Pennsylvania, these are the only suitable locations for fast-charging stations. State and federal officials should quickly work together to resolve the funding dilemma. If the state can’t use the federal funds, it should allocate funding from its surplus to the Turnpike Commission to install stations at service plazas.{/span}

{span}Electric vehicles may not replace gas-powered ones for a long time. But as EV technology improves moment by moment, the state must stay ahead by building out an EV infrastructure that’s ready for the future.{/span}

— Pittsburgh Post-Gazette via AP