I stopped by the Olney Village Center today to check on an NRG eVgo Freedom Station that has been under construction for a few weeks and found the CHAdeMO charger up and seemingly running.
Olney, Maryland is in the middle of a big EV charging “desert” so this was nice to see. There was a blue box that will eventually house a Level 2 EVSE in a parking spot in another row. No word on when that will be running.
NRG eVgo usually conducts a few weeks of testing before announcing new Freedom Stations on their official map. Don’t expect this station to have consistent uptime in the testing interval. In fact, your regular eVgo card may not initiate a session, so be prepared to call customer service to see if they can remotely start the charging during the testing interval.
The successful applicants for the Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program (EVIP) grant to develop a DC Fast Charger Network in Maryland have been selected. The three grantees will partner with the state to add 26 DC Fast Charging stations at 21 sites between Ocean City and Hagerstown. The charging stations should be in place by May, 2016.
This program was announced by the Maryland Attorney General on April 24, 2014. The $1,000,000 for the grant comes from a Consent Decree secured from a settlement for alleged violations of the Clean Air Act.
The DC Fast Charging stations installed through the EVIP grant must have both CHAdeMO and SAE Combo chargers at each location and be within ½ mile of the highway exit or within a Metropolitan area. There will be a fee to use them.
At the time it was announced, the network was proposed to encourage Interstate travel and extend as far west as Deep Creek Lake in Garrett County. However, none of the proposals included any sites west of Hagerstown.
The grant program is administered by the Maryland Energy Administration (MEA) with participation of the Maryland Departments of Environment (MDE) and Transportation (MDOT) and Maryland Clean Cities Coalition.
More details, including the exact sites chosen, should be released soon and I will report updates as I learn them.
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Two EV charging stations are coming soon to the Lewes Terminal of the Cape May – Lewes Ferry. These stations will be part of the state-wide network developed by the University of Delaware and the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC). This is the same program that has placed High-Amp Level 2 charging stations at the Delaware Welcome Center on I-95 and planned for Rehoboth Beach.
The stations are expected to be in place by mid-December and will be located near the terminal building, next to the handicapped parking area. Charging will be available during ferry operating hours and will be free of cost.
We took a road trip in our TH!NK City EV in the fall of 2012 and rode the ferry from Lewes to Cape May, New Jersey. I called ahead to ask if there was any place to charge while waiting or better yet, on the ferry itself during the 90 minute ride. Even though they told me there was no charging available, I hoped to find an outlet once aboard. Unfortunately, there were no outlets but taking our EV on the ferry was a great experience. Here is a quick video showing our EV on the boat ride.
Last night I stopped by the Trader Joes in the Gateway Overlook Shopping Center in Elkridge, Maryland and noticed construction equipment and a blocked off area in the nearby parking lot. I have been looking for signs of an NRG eVgo Freedom Station rumored for this area for about a year. I had given up actively looking for it since an eVgo station opened nearby at Arundel Mills and I figured that it may have taken the place of the one planned for near Columbia.
The construction area had plywood boards covering two holes between a couple of parking spaces and a long trench that seemed consistent with the layout of other eVgo Freedom Station sites that I’ve seen. There was also a big hole by an electrical cabinet at the edge of the parking lot close to the Costco gasoline station. I highly suspected this was preparation for an eVgo charging site which typically includes a CHAdeMO DC Fast Charger and one or two Level 2 charging stations.
I searched the Howard County building permits and found that a commercial electrical permit was issued to Mona Electric on August 29, 2014 for an eVgo electric vehicle charging station at 6630 Marie Curie Drive. MAP LINK
This particular location will be interesting because it will be a commercial charging station with usage fees and it is only about two miles from the Howard County CHAdeMO charger at the Ascend Building which is free for public use.
Eleven parking lots in Maryland will soon get solar canopies that will power at least one EV charging station at each location. The Maryland Energy Administration announced the recipients of their Parking Lot Solar PV Canopy with Electric Vehicle Charger Grant Program. The MEA program took applications from businesses, state and local governments, and non-profits for funding of up to $400,000 per project. To be eligible for the grant, plans must include at least 125 kW of solar PV panels mounted to a canopy structure over a parking lot.
Other benefits include reduced snow removal costs, shade and precipitation protection to vehicles, and increased clean electricity generation from a site close to local loads.
Each location must have at least one Level 2 electric vehicle charging station powered by the solar PV system. All projects must be completed and operating by June 15, 2015.
City Commissioners Seeking Public Feedback. Set to Vote August 15, 2014
There’s finally some news to report on the pair of electric vehicle charging stations proposed for Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. The City Commissioners met on August 4, 2014 and continued the discussion with Dr. Willet Kempton and Kathleen Harris of the University of Delaware.
At the initial discussion in May, the commissioners seemed to be split on the idea with Mayor Sam Cooper saying that he thinks the private sector should be providing the stations not the taxpayers. They are currently seeking input from the public and will vote whether or not to install the two charging stations at their August 15th meeting.
Three possible sites were considered and presented by city manager Sharon Lynn and the preferred choice of the three is at a small park next to the Henlopen Condominiums near the north end of the boardwalk. The other two sites considered were the Visitor’s Center and a city owned parking lot near the Library and Senior Center.
The triangular-shaped park which the commissioner’s referred to as Mariner’s Park but is labeled Surfside Park on the map, has an electrical transformer in one corner and metered parking spaces around the perimeter. The transformer will need to be upgraded and Delmarva Power has offered to do that work free of charge. The materials to upgrade the existing meter, and lay the wiring and concrete pads for the charging stations are estimated to be less than $1,000 which Dr. Kempton said the program will pay for. The labor to install the stations will be provided by the city.
View Larger Map
Dr. Kempton approached the commissioners about becoming a partner in the grant-funded program because Rehoboth Beach was determined to be a strategic location to recharge electric vehicles that are traveling within the state. The idea is to place the stations within 50 miles of each other throughout the entire state. The stations are high-amp Level 2 stations manufactured by Millbank that retail for $1,500 each.
Mayor Sam Cooper said, “I’m still not convinced it’s something that we as a municipality ought to be endeavoring, I think it’s a great opportunity for entrepreneurs to take on. I just don’t feel it’s something we ought to be spending taxpayer money on.”
Commissioner Stan Mills said, “I think it shows some goodwill to partner with the University of Delaware, DNREC and the state in promoting the use of electric vehicles statewide.” He concluded that he’d like to solicit input from the public over the next several weeks and take up the question at the next meeting.
Parking spaces and electrical transformer at spot favored to place two EV charging stations.
I listened to the entire proceeding and in my opinion, the commissioners were well informed about EV charging and asked relevant questions about charging speed, the durability and upgrade-ability of the equipment and if the current standard will become obsolete soon. They also understand that the charging stations will meet the needs of drivers of electric cars that can take full advantage of the 18 kW high-speed charging. One commissioner specifically said that some of their correspondence came specifically from Tesla owners, and asked if they can benefit from high-speed charging.
One of the commissioners asked if there have been many inquiries from EV owners asking about charging stations and if the stations would help the image of the city. Carol Everhart of the local Chamber of Commerce said, “There are requests for it, it’s not a tremendous number but I think it’s where the cars are going.” She added, “I think it’s a positive if it can be accomplished. It’s certainly not a negative in any way.”
Here is contact info for the Mayor and Board of Commissioners. They are scheduled to vote on August 15, 2014.
UPDATE: On August 15, 2014, the Rehoboth Beach Commissioners voted in favor of the charging stations.
An official ground breaking ceremony was held for the Little Patuxent Square complex of apartments, offices and shops in downtown Columbia, Maryland. The nine-story, roughly $75 million building is designed to meet LEED Gold standards and will feature a green roof, space for Zip cars and its 740 space underground parking garage will have electric vehicle charging stations. The building is scheduled to open in the summer of 2016.
Thanks to @bro05 for bringing this planned charging site to my attention.
A few weeks ago I reported that Columbia Whole Foods confirmed that they would have two charging stations at their new store that opens August 20, 2014. The two GE stations have been installed right where I suspected. They are not powered on yet and access to the parking lot is restricted with construction still taking place.
They had said via Twitter, “We’ll have 2 electric vehicle charging stations that can charge 2 vehicles at a time!” Indeed, there are two charging stations and each has one J-1772 connector. I was hoping that meant that each station would have two connectors but that’s not the case.
Two GE charging stations at Columbia Whole Foods
Whole Foods will be the first grocery store in Howard County, Maryland to provide car charging for customers. MOM’s Organic Market in Jessup does not have EV charging stations even though most other stores in their chain do. I understand that the reason has something to do with circumstances beyond their control at the Jessup location. I’m grateful for all the businesses that install charging stations for their customers. I’m likely to become a customer and stay a customer of those places. @Lanny
Electric Vehicle DC Fast Charger potential locations shown in green shaded areas. Click map to enlarge.
On April 24, 2014, the Maryland Attorney General held an event in Maple Lawn to announce $1 million in funding for a statewide Fast Charging Network for electric vehicles. (I posted video of that announcement here). At the time, particulars of the plan were still being worked on. Many of us had questions about the plan especially which charging connector standard (CHAdeMO or SAE Combo) will be used.
The Maryland Energy Administration has begun accepting applications for the Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Grant Program (EVIP) and I’ve learned some new details including proposed locations, the timeline for completion and which charging connectors will be used.
The goal of the EVIP is to aid in the development of a DC Fast Charging Network in Maryland. A press release says the program is intended to promote energy independence in the state by facilitating greater investment in clean fuel automobiles. Widespread adoption of electric vehicles is also a critical tenet of the Maryland Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Council (EVIC), which seeks to have 60,000 electric vehicles in Maryland by 2020. EVIC recommended that the state incentivize EV ownership by ensuring adequate availability of EV charging infrastructure.
The funds for the grant came from a Consent Decree for alleged violations of the clean air act. Part of the Consent Decree is establishing charging infrastructure necessary to address “range anxiety.” Range anxiety describes a condition in which the consumer is hesitant to buy an EV due to concerns about being stranded without access to a charging station or being unable to complete a trip given the constraints of the vehicle. This EV infrastructure grant program is designed to help alleviate this concern.
The program is expected to fund 20-40 stations. Proposed locations include Western and Southern Maryland, as well as the Eastern Shore and the Baltimore-Annapolis-Washington DC metropolitan areas. EVIP is a competitive grant requiring at least 50% cost sharing. Once installed, there will be a fee to use the DC Fast charging stations.
In order to facilitate charging of all vehicles, the DC Fast Charging stations installed through this grant must be configured with both CHAdeMO and SAE Combo charging standards at each location (either as a dual connector station or as two separate stations).
Proposed stations must be located either within 1⁄2 mile of Federal or State highway exits, or within Metropolitan areas. Distances between charging stations should be less than 30 miles in Western Maryland, 40 miles in Central Maryland, 40 to 60 miles in the Eastern Shore and Southern Maryland.
The map above indicates the general areas, by zip code, where stations would be desirable but is only used for guidance. Locations in the map seem to include the following: Ocean City, Cambridge, Princess Anne, Aberdeen and the area near the Delaware border off I-95, Cumberland, Deep Creek Lake, Brunswick, Thurmont, Hagerstown, Northwest Baltimore and the North Laurel area in Howard County.
A requirement of the grant applicant is that chargers apply the Open Charge Point Protocol (OCPP) communication standard that allows charging stations from different vendors to communicate. This will allow drivers to charge at stations outside of their network or charge without needing membership in any charging network.
The winning applicant will be announced in November, 2014 and the installation of all stations should be completed by October 1, 2016.
Concrete pads with electrical conduit in front of the Whole Foods Market in Columbia, MD opening in August.
The new Whole Foods market that is opening in Columbia, Maryland on August 20th, has confirmed that they will have EV charging stations at the new store. Earlier today via Twitter they said, “We’ll have 2 electric vehicle charging stations that can charge 2 vehicles at a time!”
EV charging station at Whole Foods Market in Annapolis, MD.
Adjacent to the parking lot at the new store are two concrete pads with electrical conduit and threaded rods that seem to match the bolt pattern of the dual-head GE unit that is installed at the Annapolis Whole Foods. The spacing between those two pads in Columbia seems to be consistent with fitting two cars at each station. Kudos to Whole Foods Market for being a forward thinking company that has electric vehicle charging at most of their stores.
