The Georgia Department of Transportation (Georgia DOT) has submitted the state’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Deployment Plan to unlock federal funding allocated for the development of a nationwide electric vehicle (EV) charging station network. In conjunction with the submittal, the department launched a website to inform constituents about the project status.
The 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law established a National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Formula Program (NEVI) to provide funding to states for strategic deployment of an electric vehicle charging infrastructure. In addition, the funding will establish an interconnected network to facilitate data collection, access and reliability. Georgia’s allotment from the NEVI formula program is approximately $135 million.
The submission of Georgia’s plan is a critically important first step in the ultimate deployment of NEVI formula funds. Georgia DOT will now begin the process of creating an implementation plan that will determine such details as exact locations for charging stations, selection process for vendors and operators, identification of private sector partners, and other elements.
“Georgia has a rapidly expanding electric vehicle ecosystem that is highlighted by a robust EV business community and the fact that our state is a leader in the southeast when it comes to electric vehicle registrations,” states Russel R. McMurry, P.E. commissioner of Georgia DOT. “With the needs of both the public and private businesses in mind, the department submitted this plan with input from a wide range of stakeholders including utilities, EV manufacturers, community-based groups and private sector partners.”
Georgia leads the Southeast with more than 1,300 publicly available electric vehicle charging stations with an estimated 3,400 individual outlets. That number represents more electric charging stations or outlets per capita in the Southeast and Sunbelt, except for California. Additionally, with a 4.4 ratio of electric vehicle registrations, Georgia is the only state in the southeast approaching the national average of 4.8 electric vehicle registrations.
The NEVI formula program requires Georgia DOT to submit the state’s EV Infrastructure Deployment Plan. The Joint Office of Energy and Transportation will review the plan and has indicated that a response will be issued by September 30, 2022.
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