Today at Liberty Park, Mayor Jackie Biskupski announced the completion of a significant expansion of Salt Lake City’s electric vehicle (EV) public charging infrastructure. Joined by Bryce Bird, Director of the Utah Division of Air Quality, the Mayor ceremonially plugged an electric vehicle into one of the City’s 28 new “smart,” Level 2 EV charging ports.
The 28 charging ports are located at 12 sites—new and existing—across Salt Lake City and have replaced five older units. New locations include the International Peace Gardens, Sorenson Multicultural Center, Sunnyside Avenue near Hogle Zoo, Pioneer Park, Forest Dale Golf Course, and others.
“This project is a win for clean air, while also providing more equitable access to charging stations at locations across the City,” Mayor Biskupski said
The Utah Division of Air Quality (DAQ) grant went toward hard costs, including purchasing the new stations. This money was combined with City funding to help pay for the overall investment.
“Since vehicle emissions account for 50 percent of Utah’s emissions inventory, electric vehicles are a viable option for air quality benefits, as they have zero emissions at the tailpipe,” Bird said. “The state values the opportunity to partner with the city on innovative transportation options that improve air quality.”
To support use of the new stations in the near term, Mayor Biskupski has transmitted to the City Council a proposal to waive fees through January 31st, 2018. “Because the project came in under budget, we’re proposing to use remaining funds to provide EV charging at no costs to users,” she said.
While the Council considers the waiver, a fee of $1 plus $0.10/kwh will be in effect, which covers the cost of electricity and other ongoing station costs.
The new EV units are “smart,” mobile-enabled systems on the ChargePoint network and will provide a higher level of service to EV owners while also ensuring better operations and issue response times from the City itself.
“This is an exciting upgrade,” the Mayor said. “Users will now be able to go online using the ChargePoint app to see if stations are available for immediate use, get notifications about their charging status, track energy stats, and more.”
The City will also be notified immediately of any stations needing service.
In addition to their clean air benefits, the wider adoption of electric vehicles is also a cornerstone of Salt Lake City’s vision to reduce community greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent by 2040. This vision, which Salt Lake City is calling “Climate Positive,” was catalyzed by a joint resolution adopted by Mayor Biskupski and the City Council last year. In addition to ensuring a transition to 100 percent renewable energy for the entire community’s electricity supply by 2032, Climate Positive calls for a reduction in emissions from all energy sources.
Because on-road transportation accounts for roughly 20 percent of Salt Lake City’s community carbon footprint, electrifying transportation and ultimately powering it with 100 percent clean energy is a key step in the plan to meet the Climate Positive goals.
For more information:
Station Locations are live on Plugshare.com and also available via:
http://www.slcgov.com/transportation/transportation-electric-vehicle-charging-stations
ChargePoint features: www.chargepoint.com/drivers/mobile
Salt Lake City’s climate goals: www.slcgreen.com/climatepositive