CLARKSBURG, W.Va. (WBOY) — The West Virginia Department of Transportation’s National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Deployment Plan submitted to the federal government last week is drawing some criticism.
All 50 states were required to submit a NEVI plan to the federal government by Aug. 1. West Virginia’s plan proposes pulling electric vehicle charging stations somewhere along Interstate 64, 77 or 79 in the Charleston area; Interstate 64 near Huntington and somewhere near Lewisburg; Interstate 77 in the Beckley area and somewhere in Mercer County; Interstate 68 or 79 in the Morgantown area; Interstate 79 near Flatwoods and Weston; Interstate 70 near Wheeling; and Interstate 81 near Martinsburg.
The stations are about 50 miles apart on major travel routes throughout the state. The charging stations can provide 150 kilowatts for fast charging, but WVDOH officials say the stations are actually intended for people passing through our state, not so much for our residents.
Perry Keller, WVDOH NEVI Coordinator, “So the people that use it are going to mainly be the people driving through the state, or long distance within the state. If you owned one locally, you’re not going to go and pay an extra fee for the higher voltage charge to put in your car and wait 30 minutes when you could go home and plug it in at night, and it would be a lot cheaper.”
The proposed electric vehicle infrastructure plan, if approved, will have 12 charging stations throughout the state, about 50 miles apart.
West Virginia’s complete NEVI Deployment Plan can be found here.