May 15, 2013

Clean Cities Coalitions Charge Up Plug-In Electric Vehicles

Which came first, the plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) or its charger? Because you can’t have one without the other, the Energy Department's Clean Cities coalitions nationwide are helping their communities get ready for PEVs by using local knowledge to ensure that both are easily deployed and available to consumers.

To support the adoption of clean transportation technologies that give drivers more options, the Energy Department invested about $130 million through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act—in addition to other federally supported projects—to evaluate thousands of PEVs and their supporting residential, commercial, and public chargers. These projects—led by companies Chargepoint America and Ecotality—are collecting comprehensive data to help researchers and other stakeholders understand how consumers use the vehicles and chargers. City planners, PEV charging companies and others can use this public data to improve permitting for residential installations and map out new locations for public chargers. Local Clean Cities coalitions have been key to improving these projects' reach and effectiveness, helping companies select the best locations in their communities for chargers that would maximize use and minimize overlap. For the complete story, see the Energy Blog.