Oregon is hoping to attract more drivers to purchase electric vehicles with its plan to add hundreds of charging stations across the state.
The $100 million program, which aims to provide electric vehicle chargers every 50 miles along Oregon’s highways, was approved by the federal government Wednesday.
“We’re trying to address a little bit of this chicken and the egg. What comes first? Do people have the cars or is the charging available? We know that charging is key to people gaining confidence that an electric vehicle is something that can work for them,” Amanda Pietz, an administrator at ODOT, told KOIN.
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The program reportedly includes funding from state and federal resources, including $36 million from the Oregon Department of Transportation, $65 million from the federal government via federal grants with matching finds from local governments, and an additional $20 million from the Federal Infrastructure Act.
The installation of the chargers will not begin until next year.
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The entire project is expected to take seven or eight years to complete.
