Mayor Gallego and AG Mayes React to the Resumption of Electric Vehicle Charging Station Construction Across the Grand Canyon State

In a rare, in this current political environment, and important victory for the proponents of clean energy and modern sustainability, the Arizona Department of Transportation, after revised guidance and a release of funding from the Trump government, has resumed planning to construct an Electric Vehicle Charging Network across the Grand Canyon State.

According to reporting from Sasha Hupka at AZ Central:

“The Arizona Department of Transportation recently said it planned to build or upgrade nearly two dozen electric vehicle charging stations across the state in the final phase of the effort.

The project, funded with $76.5 million from the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program, is intended to encourage electric vehicle adoption and reduce so-called “range anxiety.”

It will help construct a total of up to 74 charging stations along major highways — most in rural areas of the state. Those facilities will each house at least four fast-charging ports designed to juice up a standard electric vehicle in under 30 minutes.”

This release of funding partially resulted from the Trump Government losing in court when several states, including Arizona led by Attorney General Kris Mayes, secured an injunction against the federal funding freeze.

In a face saving move, the federal government, according to Hupka, released the funding after new guidance that:

“…Removed requirements that charging stations be located no more than 50 miles apart, and within a mile of the highway. Garin Groff, a spokesperson for ADOT, said that wouldn’t affect previously approved plans and would give officials “better flexibility” when locating stations around grid capacity, geography and other factors.”

Reacting to this development, Phoenix Mayor and Climate Mayors Chairperson Kate Gallego commented to Blog for Arizona:

“It’s great news that Arizona will receive much needed federal funding to modernize our roadway infrastructure. While much of this charging infrastructure will be outside of urban cores, it’s to the benefit of Phoenix residents and travelers across our state for this infrastructure to be more widely accessible. Phoenix continues to electrify our fleet and expand public access to chargers, and this announcement complements our efforts.”

In a social media post, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes offered:

“Another big win for Arizona! Our lawsuit holding the Trump administration accountable has protected $76.5M for AZ transportation infrastructure, most going to rural AZ. As your Attorney General, it’s my job to fight for the funding you were promised.”