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Maryland “Right-to-Charge” Law is Now in Effect

October 1, 2021October 1, 2021 Lanny

Homeowners Associations and Condos

A Maryland Right-to-Charge law for homeowners and condo residents goes into effect today, October 1, 2021.

Maryland joins eight other states including Virginia and New York to prohibit HOAs and condo boards from denying permission for a homeowner to install an electric vehicle charging station within certain guidelines. It would make void and unenforceable any covenants or restrictions of a condominium or homeowners association if they prohibit or unreasonably restrict the installation or use of electric vehicle recharging equipment in an owner’s deeded or designated parking space.

This bill gives homeowners the right to install a charging station in their parking spot as long as they pay for the costs of installation, maintenance, electricity and subsequent removal upon moving. Many people in Maryland live in housing that is governed by an HOA or condo board. Addressing the issue of charging at multi-family units is important to achieve the full potential of electric vehicle adoption in the state.

Maryland Electric Corridors Grant Program – Round One Awards

September 30, 2021September 30, 2021 Lanny

Recently, Maryland announced that funding was awarded for 36 new public DC fast chargers at 13 locations. PlugInSites has learned a bit more about which companies won the awards and how many stations each charging provider will be operating.

Funding From VW Settlement

The funding comes from the Volkswagen diesel settlement. Maryland was allocated approximately $75.6 million to use on projects to reduce the effect of diesel emissions from the transportation sector. Up to 15% ($11.3 million) of Maryland’s Volkswagen Mitigation Plan funding can be used for electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

Maryland decided to release the funding in three rounds of public-private partnership grants. The first round is for $3.7 million for Level 2 workplace charging and DC fast chargers along highways.

Maryland Electric Corridors Grant Program

The Maryland Electric Corridors Grant Program (ECGP) is for fast charging stations along Alternative Fuel Corridors that have been designated by the Federal Highway Administration. The Alternative Fuel Corridors for electric vehicles include US Routes 50 and 301 on the Eastern Shore and I-68 / I-70 in Western Maryland.

The chart below details the applicants’ locations, number of chargers and funding amounts. EVgo was awarded $950,500 in grants for 22 fast chargers at 5 locations. Blink got $1,114,832 to install 8 chargers at 4 sites. An independent gas station in Annapolis, a gun store in Cumberland and Electric Vehicle Institute (EVI) were awarded funding for 2 chargers each. EVGateway got $315,840 to install 4 chargers at Ashley Homestore in Lexington Park. Here is a link to a map of all the ECGP locations for round one of the program.

Funding Award Chart

ECGP Awardees, Round One Chart:

Edgewater, Maryland Supercharger is Open

September 30, 2021September 30, 2021 Lanny

A Tesla Supercharger is now open at the Wawa store at 3166 Solomons Island Rd, Edgewater, Maryland.

The Edgewater, MD Supercharger has eight charging stalls rated at 250 kW max. They are located in the parking lot on the north side of the Wawa store.

The Edgewater Supercharger is about four miles south of the very popular Annapolis Supercharger. Perhaps some of the Tesla drivers will make the trek down Rt. 2/Solomons Island Rd to use the faster 250 kW Version 3 (V3) Superchargers at the Wawa. Annapolis has Version 2 Superchargers (150 kW) which are not quite as fast.

This Supercharger took over six months to complete from the time that equipment first appeared on at the site in March. This is longer than it usually takes and that could be due to a variety of factors that we don’t know.

We are watching a number of other Tesla Superchargers that are currently under construction in the greater Washington, DC area. These include: Laurel, MD – Van Dusen Road; Aberdeen, MD – Churchville Road; Abingdon, MD; Winchester, VA; and Bealeton, VA.

New Castle County, Delaware Considers EV-Capable Ordinance

September 29, 2021September 29, 2021 Lanny

For All New Residential Construction

Last night the New Castle County Council in Delaware introduced an EV Capable ordinance to ensure that new housing units have the capability to easily and more cost-effectively install electric vehicle service equipment in the future. Ordinance 21-116, sponsored by Councilperson Dee Durham, would require conduit and sufficient physical space in the electrical panel to accommodate a branch circuit for EV charging in new residential construction.

The ordinance cites Howard and Montgomery Counties in Maryland as locations that already require new residential construction to be EV-Ready.

Frederick County Maryland Proposal Could Punish EV Drivers

September 22, 2021August 19, 2024 Lanny

Ordinance Would Leave Innocent EV Drivers Vulnerable to Fines

The Frederick County Council introduced a bill last night that, if passed, will leave electric vehicle drivers vulnerable to steep fines at EV charging stations.

According to the text of the bill, “A person may not stop, stand, or park a plug-in vehicle in a plug-in vehicle parking space if the vehicle is not connected to the charging equipment.”

This sounds reasonable in theory. Nobody should park at a charging station unless they intend to use it. But there’s a problem when you try to codify this into the sharply defined confines of the law.

What happens if you plug in and someone comes along while you’re away and unplugs your vehicle? Then you’re in violation of a Class C offense of Section 1-1-9 of the Frederick County Code, punishable by a fine of between $100 and $250.

The person who unplugged you? Where is the law to prohibit their behavior? Apparently there is no law against unplugging an electric vehicle without the permission of the owner.* This will be a boon for the haters. Why roll coal on the “greenies” when they can just unplug their cars at the charging station and laugh when they get a ticket?

No More Charger Sharing

The Frederick County bill would make it illegal to share one charging station between two parking spaces. Charger sharing allows more efficient use of charging infrastructure. But under the “must be connected” language in the Frederick County bill, one of the two vehicles would be in violation if in a designated charging space and not plugged in.

Penalizes the Victim of Vandalism

Unfortunately another EV driver or a miscreant could unplug your car. This would immediately make you go from legally parked to being in violation of the proposed Frederick ordinance, through no fault of your own.

Maryland EV Percentage by County – August, 2021

September 21, 2021September 24, 2023 Lanny

Maryland EV registrations are 37,432 as of the end of August, 2021, according to data from MDOT / Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration.

About 12,763 of those electric vehicles are registered in Montgomery County. As the most populated county in Maryland, with more than one million residents, it makes sense that Montgomery has the greatest total number of plug-in vehicles. In May, 2020, PlugInSites compared Maryland Plug-In Vehicle Adoption by County using the number of plug-in vehicles registered per 100,000 residents.

Perhaps a more useful metric is what percentage of all vehicles registered in each county is electric? The results show a wide gulf between the suburban counties in the center of the state and the more rural areas of Maryland.

Montgomery and Howard Have the Highest Percentage of EVs

There were about 5 million vehicles registered in Maryland as of June 30, 2021 according to MVA. About 794,713 are registered in Montgomery County. About 8,140 of the vehicles in the County are Battery Electric and 4,623 are Plug-In Hybrids for a total of 12,763 plug in vehicles. That means 1.61% of all vehicles registered in Montgomery County are plug-ins. Howard County has the 2nd highest percentage of plug-in vehicles at 1.52%. Montgomery and Howard are way out in front of the rest of the Maryland for percentage of EVs.

Frederick, Anne Arundel and Baltimore City are next in the rankings with between 0.76% and 0.70% of all registered vehicles being electric. Frederick, Anne Arundel and Baltimore City’s percentage of EVs is very close to the state of Maryland at large which is 0.74%.

Saint Mary’s, Harford, and Charles Counties have are around 0.38% of their vehicles being plug-ins. These counties fall around the middle of the list.

Betterton, Maryland EV Charging Stations

September 19, 2021September 19, 2021 Lanny

Earlier this year, we took an EV day trip to the eastern shore and visited the small town of Betterton in Kent County, Maryland.

Jewel of the Chesapeake

Betterton, known as the Jewel of the Chesapeake, was a popular beach resort in the early 1900s. People would cross the bay on steamboats to enjoy summer days and nights at the beach. Betterton was replete with hotels, restaurants, dance halls, taverns and amusement arcades. The resort town declined in popularity in the 1930s due to the depression and the rise of the automobile which enabled easier access to the Atlantic beaches such as Ocean City.

Today, Betterton is a quiet community where many have come to retire or have a second home. There are two restaurants in town including Marzella’s by the Bay where we ordered lunch to go during our visit.

Utility-Owned Level 2 Stations

There are two electric vehicle charging stations located behind the Betterton Town Hall at 100 Main Street. The stations were installed by Delmarva Power as part of an EV charging pilot program approved by the Maryland Public Service Commission. Delmarva owns the stations and Greenlots is the network operator that collects payments and handles customer service.

$71,612 for Labor, Material and Overhead

The total cost for the two Level 2 stations was $71,612 according to a report filed with the Maryland PSC. The implementation cost for the Betterton EV charging site is broken down as follows:

$26,663 Labor
$17,387 Material
$27,562 Utility Admin & Overhead
$71,612 Total EVSE location cost

Revel Fast Charging Hub in New York City

September 15, 2021September 15, 2021 Lanny

Universal Electric Vehicle Charging for City Dwellers

Are concentrated hubs of DC fast chargers the solution to charging personal electric vehicles in the urban environment? Revel, a New York City-based electric transportation company, is testing the concept of EV charging Superhubs.

I recently visited the Revel Superhub in Brooklyn and it was impressive. The charging stations are located in an open parking lot at 467 Marcy Ave in the Bed-Stuy section of Brooklyn. There are 25 charging stations all wrapped in bright blue, the same color as the fleet of Teslas that Revel uses in their electric vehicle ride hailing service.

The Revel Superhub uses 25 stand-alone fast chargers manufactured by Tritium. The RTM75 fast chargers can deliver up to 75 kW according to specifications. The Tritium fast chargers came stock with both a CCS and a CHAdeMO connector.

Universal Chargers Adapted for Teslas

Revel has retrofitted all but three of the chargers with an off-the-shelf Tesla CHAdeMO adapter that allows Tesla vehicles to use the chargers. This is a clever work around to allow Revel to serve the Tesla market which comprises the majority of electric vehicles on the road right now. This is similar to what EVgo is doing with their DC fast chargers. [EVgo Adds Tesla Plugs to DMV Area Fast Chargers]

The EV charging Superhub is open to the public 24/7. In contrast to many other fast charging sites in New York City, there is no entrance fee or cost for parking. All you pay for is the electricity itself which is $0.39 per kilowatt hour plus tax.

Rivian Fast Chargers Planned for Belcamp, Maryland

September 11, 2021September 11, 2021 Lanny

Electric truck and SUV manufacturer Rivian is planning to install DC Fast Chargers at a shopping center just off of I-95 in Belcamp, MD.

According to documents submitted to Harford County, Rivian wants to install six stalls in the north west portion of the parking lot at 1321 Riverside Parkway. An additional three spots will be prepared for future expansion for an eventual total of nine DCFC spots.

The Riverside Shopping Center where the Rivian chargers are planned contains a ShopRite grocery (open 6:00 AM – 10:00 PM), McDonald’s and Waffle House (both open 24 hours), plus Walgreens, Subway, Riverside Pizzeria and Crab Du Jour restaurant.

Part of Rivian Adventure Network

Rivian has said they plan to install more than 3,500 CCS-equipped fast chargers at over 600 sites in the U.S. and Canada by the end of 2023. This exclusive network of DC fast chargers will comprise what they call the Rivian Adventure Network that is reported to be open to Rivian owners only.

CCS for Rivian Vehicles

The company has said that their fast chargers “are currently proposed to be exclusively for the use of Rivian vehicles only.” However, the text of a lease agreement in Salida, CO suggests that Rivian reserves the option to open some or all of the fast charger spaces to all electric vehicles. Presumably they would employ some sort of electronic authorization method with their CCS chargers.

EV-Ready Ordinance Proposed in New Castle County, Delaware

August 30, 2021September 28, 2022 Lanny

Requirement for New Residential Construction

The County Council of New Castle County, DE is considering an ordinance to require that new housing have the wiring and other necessary capacity to more easily install EV charging stations in the future.

The proposed ordinance states, “residents of New Castle County will increasingly demand that our housing stock be outfitted with the equipment necessary to re-charge electric vehicles” and “retrofitting existing homes to install electric vehicle charging stations is both time consuming and expensive, unless the home was initially designed and constructed to facilitate the easy installation of such charging stations.”

The ordinance cites Howard and Montgomery Counties in Maryland as locations that currently require that all new residential construction be EV-Ready.

WHEREAS, several jurisdictions, such as Howard and Montgomery Counties in Maryland, the City of Atlanta, and the entire State of California currently require that all new construction either provide for the installation of electric vehicle charging stations and/or that all new construction be “EV-ready”

Howard County Council passed an ordinance in 2018 to require EV charging infrastructure at new residential construction. That legislation was one of the first of its kind and has become a model for the nation. Howard County’s EV-Ready code is cited as an example in the Great Plains Institute’s “Summary of Best Practices in Electric Vehicle Ordinances”.

The New Castle County ordinance would require one parking space to be EV-ready for each new single-family home, duplexes and townhouses with garages. Councilwoman Dee Durham, the legislation’s lead sponsor, told Delaware Public Media, “It’s cheaper to do it ahead of time than after the fact.”

For multi-unit dwellings, the ordinance would require 5% of the total available parking spaces to have a Level 2 EVSE installed and 50% of the total spaces must be EV-Ready.

New Castle County Council Meeting on Tuesday

UPDATE – The ordinance will now be introduced at the September 28, 2021 meeting.

The New Castle County Council is scheduled to consider proposed ordinance 21-094 at a meeting on September 28, 2021 at 6:30 PM. Members of the public may be provided an opportunity to make comments according to the agenda.

For more information about this subject, see the PlugInSites Legislation Reference – New Construction EV-Ready Requirements.