Final days: Biden admin unlocks $635M for EV infrastructure

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In one of his final directives, President Biden has authorized the release of additional grant money for essential EV infrastructure construction throughout the country, including vital freight transport corridors.
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With less than a week until President-elect Trump reassumes office, the outgoing Biden administration has announced $635 million in grants from its signature Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to continue building out electric vehicle charging and the necessary infrastructure.

This latest grant is intended to fund 49 projects that'll include more than 11,500 EV charging ports and hydrogen and natural gas fueling infrastructure that'll be located along vital corridors and in communities in 27 states, four Federally Recognized Tribes, and the District of Columbia. 

A total of $368 million is to be allocated for 42 community projects to expand EV charging infrastructure nationwide, while $268 million is to spent on seven so-called "corridor" fast -charging projects to build out the national fast charging network along designated Alternative Fuel Corridors. 

“The Biden Administration has made historic investments to support the EV transition and make sure it’s made in America,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “These investments will help states and communities build out a network of EV chargers in the coming years so that one day, finding a charge on a road trip will be as easy as filling up at a gas station.”

The grants are made possible through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s $2.5 billion Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI) Discretionary Grant Program and a 10 percent set-aside from the $5 billion National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program.

To date, there are around 70,000 public EV charging stations and more than 197,000 charging ports across the country, according to the Department of Energy's Alternative Fuel Data Center

The corridor projects, in particular, are aimed directly at trucking. For example, the Port Authority of Houston is set to receive about $24.8 million to build and operate a hydrogen fueling center in Bayport, Texas specifically for heavy-duty trucks.

Meanwhile, the Maryland Department of Transportation is partnering with its Pennsylvania and West Virginia counterpart agencies along with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection to deploy alternative fueling infrastructure for medium- and heavy-duty trucks along the I-81 and I-78 corridors across Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and West Virginia. Six fast charging stations will be installed in designated locations specifically for fleets.

It's unlikely the Trump administration will be able to rescind these funds once they've been allocated, hence the Biden administration's recent rush to distribute clean energy funds before leaving office. 

[Related: EPA awards California $135M to phase out diesel and semi buses]

Jay Traugott has covered the automotive and transportation sector for over a decade and now serves as Senior Editor for Clean Trucking. He holds a drifting license and has driven on some of the world's best race tracks, including the Nurburgring and Spa. He lives near Boulder, Colorado, and spends his free time snowboarding, climbing, and hiking. He can be reached at [email protected].

Hydrogen Fuel Cell & BEV Survey
The following survey was sent as a link in an email cover message in February 2023 to the newsletter lists for Overdrive and CCJ. After approximately two weeks, a total of 176 owner-operators under their own authority, 113 owner-operators leased or assigned to a carrier and 82 fleet executives and 36 fleet employees from fleets with 10 or more power units had completed and submitted the questionnaire for a total of 407 qualified responses. Cross-tabulations based on respondent type are provided for each question when applicable.
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