A letter dated Sept. 27 states the “Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has completed the review of the Texas Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Deployment Plan required under the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program. Based on the review and the recommendations provided by the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation (Joint Office), FHWA has determined that the plan is approved for implementation. With this approval, Fiscal Year 2022 funds are now available to Texas for obligation.”
NEVI funding is part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and is administered by the Joint Office.
The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) submitted required state planning July 28 to receive a portion of $615 million to be split among federal and state agencies. Overall, the total funding is set to be $5 billion over five years.
The plan was created in collaboration with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the State Energy Conservation Office as per federal guidelines and focuses on charging infrastructure for light-duty vehicles along designated corridors to meet anticipated growing demand for electric vehicles.
This entails installing fast-charging stations along designated routes to encourage EV adoption.
The plan lists the following in its vision:
- Expand electric alternative-fuel corridors to include almost all nonbusiness interstate routes.
- Work with the private sector to install DC fast-charging stations along corridors according to FHWA requirements. TxDOT will not own or operate the charging equipment.
- Work with metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) to identify suitable locations to install a combination of Level II and DC fast charging infrastructure in large urban areas.
- Work with rural counties and small urban areas to install DC fast charging stations at or near county seats across the state.
- Collect data from the network to assess use and identify trends for development.
