Ohio Is Getting More EV Chargers

• EVgo plans to add 20 fast-charging stations in Ohio, after being selected for the project by a unit of the Ohio Department of Transportation.
• A total of 27 stations will be added to locations along interstates as part of $18 million awarded by the state from National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program funds.
• Ohio has 130 fast-charging stations at the moment, with EVgo operating 37 stalls along 10 locations in the state.

Quite a few EV charging networks have focused on creating east-west charging corridors to allow electric cars to travel from coast to coast. But finding fast-charging stations while merely traveling inside one of the midwest states north to south, especially outside the major interstates, can be a challenge.

Case in point: Ohio has just 130 fast-charging stations at the moment, which is far from ideal for a state with multiple urban areas and a population of around 12 million. By comparison, the state has about 3900 gas stations.

But soon, some help will be on the way with EVgo revealing plans to add 20 fast-charging stations in the state after being selected by DriveOhio, which is a unit of the Ohio Department of Transportation, for awards of $13.8 million.

The effort is part of a package of $18 million awarded by DriveOhio from National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program funds, which will see a total of 27 fast-charging stations that will be added to I-70, I-71, I-74, I-75, I-76, I-77, and I-90 corridors. Details regarding specific locations have not been revealed yet.

In fact, Ohio will be one of the first states to receive funds from the NEVI program, created as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that has set aside $5 billion in funding for EV charging programs.

At the moment EVgo operates 37 fast-charging stalls in 10 locations in Ohio, so this particular effort under the NEVI program will triple the number of EVgo locations in the state. And 14 of the 20 planned locations are owned by the charging networks partner Pilot Company, with all the new stations set to receive 350-kW chargers.

In total, DriveOhio plans to award more than $100 million in NEVI funds toward building up the state’s charging infrastructure.

While additional stations for major interstate corridors are always a good thing, one significant gap that exists in the US at the moment concerns curbside chargers that can be used by those who have street parking at night. Efforts in building these slower chargers have been very limited in North America, perhaps understandably, as the majority of station builders have focused on highly-traveled routes. But in the future, it is something that municipalities will have to address as the share of EVs grows, especially in response to state mandates.

Will lack of charging infrastructure continue to be a problem for EV adoption, or are other factors such as price more important at the moment? Let us know what you think.