The Biden Administration is accelerating its push to get U.S. drivers to shift to electric vehicles by releasing more than $600 million to build thousands of new public chargers and to open hydrogen fuel stations for cars, trucks and buses.
A total of $623 million of federal grants, created by the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, will add 7,500 new EV chargers, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told reporters. Including hydrogen station projects in California, Colorado and Texas, the grants cover 47 projects in 22 states, Puerto Rico and tribal communities.
“We’re at a moment now where the electric vehicle revolution isn’t coming. It is very much here,” he said. During Biden’s tenure, “public charging ports have grown in number by about 70%, and private companies have announced more than $150 billion in investments in the EV and battery supply chain.”
Transitioning to electric vehicles from fossil-fueled ones is central to the Administration’s efforts to cut carbon emissions that are cooking the planet. Access to ubiquitous, reliable public charging stations is essential if the U.S. is to hit Biden’s target of EVs accounting for half of new auto sales by 2030. That’s because large numbers of Americans live in apartments and condominiums and lack access to a dedicated home charger. Transportation Department officials say there were 168,426 public chargers available at the end of 2023, up from 96,243 at the end of 2020.
The Biden Administration has set a goal of 500,000 EV chargers in the U.S. by 2030. “As we move towards the goal, I actually think we’re going to get to it well before 2030,” said Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt, noting the rapid pace of expansion, aided by the latest grant funds and ongoing investment by private companies.
Buttigieg said that since Biden became president, U.S. EV sales have more than quadrupled, rising to 1.4 million last year, accounting for 9% of new passenger vehicle sales. Industry researcher Cox Automotive puts the figure a bit lower, at 1.2 million units or 7.6% of all new passenger vehicles sold. And though the pace of EV sales cooled in the second half of 2023, hurt by rising interest rates and pricey vehicles, the segment will expand further.
“More new product, more incentives, more inventory, more leasing, more infrastructure — all the more will combine to push EV sales higher in the year ahead,” Cox said in a report this week. It expects EV market share to reach 10% in 2024.
The hydrogen fuel projects include expanding an existing station at California State University, Los Angeles, for passenger cars, such as Toyota’s Mirai sedan, to serve heavy-duty vehicles; building a fueling station for buses and other public vehicles in Barstow, California; and three stations for hydrogen commercial vehicles around Colorado State University. The biggest hydrogen-related grant is $70 million to build five stations for hydrogen trucks in the Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Austin and San Antonio regions.
