EV charger installation is amping up

Electric vehicle popularity is amping up — EV registration statewide and nationwide has quintupled in five years. EVs now account for one in ten vehicles sold in the United States. A proposed federal rule would compel manufacturers to make more EVs, and a new state law requires all new vehicles sold beyond 2035 to have zero tailpipe emissions.

The laws are written. Infrastructure investments are happening. The climate crisis is urgent. The EV wave is coming, but there remains a critical question:

Are we ready to charge all these electric cars?

A new Tesla “Supercharging” station was recently built along I-5 in Tacoma. Both private construction and publicly-funded construction of new chargers is accelerating, improving convenience for electric vehicle drivers.

Filling the gaps and improving reliability

The Biden Administration set aside more than $5 billion to build 500,000 chargers nationwide through the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program. More than 35 states, including Washington, have had their NEVI plans approved and have begun to receive funding. Washington state will receive a total of $71 million over the next five years through the program.

In addition, the state will invest $69 million a year to install new chargers statewide with special emphasis on serving Washingtonians in multifamily housing without dedicated parking.

Construction of new EV charging stations in Washington state is taking off. More than 460 were built in 2021, and 2023 may see that number eclipsed as the state begins to implement its NEVI plan.

Construction of new charging stations has zoomed since 2013, and the new funds will supercharge that effort. New federal funds will help the state “fill in the gaps” in rural areas and along highways. The state will also prioritize communities with poor air quality that would benefit most from decarbonized cars.

But there is room for improvement. Only 200 public charging locations statewide offer fast charging. Chargers are mostly concentrated in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue area. The state is working on an EV mapping tool to identify existing charging locations and strategically site new ones to eliminate “charging deserts.” Washingtonians can suggest future charging locations to the state Department of Transportation through the map.

Right now, EV drivers encounter chargers in disrepair, a variety of charging standards and speeds, and a variety of required apps and payment methods.

As the federal government and state install new charging stations, state officials are also creating policies to require accessible payment with credit cards, and maintenance standards to ensure that stations stay working.

Awardees of federal and state funding must produce a maintenance plan to keep chargers in operation. The state’s plan insists on a ten-year warranty for charging equipment, and the state will also compile data to track charging station construction, measure reliability, and assess driver satisfaction.

The state will also require EMV chip readers for all new charging stations beginning next January. That means anyone with a prepaid debit card or credit card can easily drive up and charge, without the need for a proprietary app.

“I don’t know how people pay for it. I think on the app, you have to set up a credit card,” said Jacqueline, a new EV driver from Tacoma. “That’s the part I don’t like. You have to do everything through this app. That’s kind of rough.”

The state’s NEVI plan includes solutions to these pain points, and the plan is already improving the number, reliability, speed, and accessibility of chargers statewide. In the first quarter of 2023, more than 120 new charging stations were installed across 19 counties, each with Level 2 or faster charging speeds.

Thirty cents a gallon

Chelan County resident and Plug-In North Central Washington board member Randy Brooks proudly poses with his wife Anne, dog Heidi, and electric car with many thousands of miles on it from cross-country trips. (Photo courtesy of Randy Brooks)

“If you’re driving a long way, it can take some ingenuity,” says Randy Brooks. “But EV travel is nearing convenience. You can get anywhere in Western Washington no problem, and an experienced EV owner can get anywhere they want with a little planning.”

Brooks serves on the board of Plug-In North Central Washington, and leading the charge to expand EV ownership in Chelan County. Brooks is a seasoned long-distance EV driver, and he recently returned from a 5,400-mile trip in his Tesla. Back in 2016, Brooks couriered a letter from the mayor of Everett to the mayor of Spokane in his EV to promote electrification.

Brooks gets around just fine, and he says things are getting better fast. There are now more than 4,000 public charging ports in Washington state. The range of new EVs improves every year. Charging an EV at home in Chelan County costs the equivalent of just $0.30 a gallon. Brooks’ experience is proof that EVs are indeed practical, even for drivers in expansive Central Washington.

Charging close to home

Curbside chargers are now operational in Seattle’s Portage Bay neighborhood. This station along Furman Avenue is among the first of 31 planned stations coming soon to several Seattle neighborhoods. (Photo courtesy of the City of Seattle)

“I go from Hillsboro to Seattle once a week, and that trip costs me about $70 in a sedan,” said Eswar, another new EV driver. “When I charge at home, and again at the office in Seattle, I don’t have to pay in between, so the trip maybe costs me $20.”

A pleasant benefit of EV ownership is leaving every morning with a “full tank” after charging overnight. Only 5% of vehicle trips exceed 30 miles, so only occasionally will most drivers need to charge far from home. Streetside charging, apartment charging, and community-based public chargers are all critical to ensure that some benefits of EVs are not exclusive for homeowners.

Even before NEVI funding arrived, state grants were helping municipalities build local charging stations. The Town of Steilacoom received a grant to install public charging stations outside of its public works facility, and the City of Lacey is using state grants to build new chargers near its city hall and library. The City of Mount Vernon’s gorgeous Library Commons project will feature 75 public chargers.

A new bank of charging stations was installed at Lacey City Hall thanks to a state Department of Commerce grant awarded to the City of Lacey.

A robust streetside charging network would help Washingtonians without off-street parking, like in urban areas or multifamily housing. The City of Seattle is installing 31 new curbside chargers this summer, for example.

Those who wish to charge at home may benefit from local utility programs or federal tax credits. EV drivers who installed a charger at home in 2022, for example, could have received a tax credit 30% of hardware and installation costs during the 2023 tax season. State agencies and legislators are debating “right to charge” policy that would prevent HOAs from prohibiting charging.

EVs hitting their stride

Electric vehicles are no longer fledgling. Newer models have extraordinary range, high customer satisfaction, and compelling amenities. But the charging experience away from home still shows some minor growing pains of a nascent technology.

But those growing pains are fading. The state is adopting important standards and committing historic investments to help. And state agencies are walking the walk, converting their own fleets to electric.

A fleet vehicle for the state Department of Labor & Industries charges behind the agency’s headquarters in Olympia.

Transportation is the leading source of emissions, and emissions are poisoning the planet. It’s an urgent task to decarbonize. Electrification will slash emissions at no cost to personal mobility. But for now, for the mainstream to buy in, governments and industry must prove that early-adopter burrs are being smoothed.

There are roughly 3,500 gas stations in Washington state. Through a mix of private enterprise and historic public investment, many thousands more charging stations are coming atop the 4,000 already operating. It won’t be long until EV chargers are ubiquitous, and it won’t be long until our daily travels cease to choke the air we share.