Plan to be Submitted to Trustee
The Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) released its Volkswagen Mitigation Plan yesterday (PDF). The plan details spending of $75.7 million that the state is eligible to receive under a settlement agreement with Volkswagen.
A draft plan for the VW settlement money was released by MDE on August 1, 2018. Public comments were solicited for the next 30 days and two listening sessions were held including one at MDE headquarters in Baltimore on August 20, 2018. Feedback received during the 30 day public comment period is said to be incorporated into this version.
The Plan will now be submitted to the Trustee overseeing the Volkswagen Mitigation Settlement funds.
Full Allowable 15% Going to EV Charging Infrastructure
The Settlement Agreement limits the amount of funds that can be used for Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) infrastructure investment to 15% of the total funds allocated to the state. Maryland plans to use the allowed maximum, or about $11.3 million, to deploy EV charging infrastructure.
Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure (15%): The Trust Fund guidelines allow a maximum of 15% of the funds to be used for electric vehicle charging infrastructure. Maryland intends to utilize the full 15% (approximately $11.3 million) for installing a mix of charging and fast charging stations. This part of the Plan will be coordinated with other existing electric vehicle infrastructure initiatives to maximize the benefits of our investment. Installing charging stations across the State will help facilitate the growth of the electric vehicle market in Maryland and assist in meeting environmental goals in the transportation sector.
The Plan notes that 2,000 more charging stations will be needed in order to meet Maryland’s electric vehicle goals by 2020. These stations are said to be needed at workplaces and other public locations along recently federally designated alternative fuel corridors including I-95, Route 50, I-270, I-70 and I-68. (at a cost of approximately $24 million).
Under this Plan, Maryland’s proposes to use these electric vehicle infrastructure funds for workplace charging, State office buildings (including Department of Transportation facilities), and the recently federally designated alternative fuel corridors. Selecting strategic installation sites will build on the state’s current efforts by ensuring adequate access to charging infrastructure for electric vehicle owners and operators. Having adequate access will facilitate the adoption of ZEVs in the State fleet and will also incentivize employee and public ZEV purchases.
Other projects being funded in the plan include $9.1 million for the Maryland Aviation Administration to replace 10 of their 49 diesel buses with electric buses.
The entire Maryland Volkswagen Mitigation Plan can be downloaded on the MDE Website.
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