In January, President Biden announced a plan to replace all U.S. government vehicles with electric models and build 500,000 EV charging stations. Now, the details of these plans have been revealed.
The $1 trillion infrastructure law that President Biden signed last month authorizes a nationwide network of charging stations and sets aside $5 billion for states to build them, according to the Associated Press.
Additionally, the infrastructure bill provides an additional $2.5 billion for local grants to support charging stations in rural areas and disadvantaged communities.
The goal is to help transform the U.S. automotive industry as it transitions to electrification as its main model automakers will be selling come 2030. Also in January, major automotive OEMs in the U.S. such as General Motors and Ford have pledged to phase out gas- and diesel-powered vehicles by 2035 and selling only electric models.
Other automakers followed suit with Volvo, Toyota, Honda, Volkswagen and many more of the leading brands moving quickly to electric vehicles as their main supply.
The move to electrification is two-fold: A growing consumer interest in the models due to the popularity of Tesla Motors; and the growing need to decrease the carbon footprint to help with climate change that is being driven by regional government mandates.
“The future of transportation in our nation and around the world is electric,’’ said Kamala Harris, vice president of the U.S. at an EV charging facility in Maryland during an event.
Harris said the Biden Administration wants EVs to be available to everyone and make it as accessible as filling up your car with gas.
The current $2 trillion social and environmental policy bill that is pending in the Senate includes a $7,500 tax credit to lower the cost of EVs for consumers.
