Three sites in Lake County and two in LaPorte County are among 39 that will benefit from grants to install electric vehicle charging stations.
The Region sites, grant applicants and charging station hosts awarded National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure grants by the Indiana Department of Transportation include:
- Interstate 80 exit 6, NIPSCO, Hard Rock Casino, 5400 W. 29th Ave., Gary
- Interstate 65 exit 253, NIPSCO, Meijer, 611 W. Lincoln Highway, Merrillville
- Interstate 80 exit 15B, Pilot, 1401 Ripley St., Lake Station
- Interstate 94, exit 34, Love’s Travel Stops, U.S. 241 Michigan City
- Interstate 80, exit 56 WB, Tesla, Indiana Toll Road, 7 N. Wilbur Shaw Plaza, Rolling Prairie
The grants, announced Thursday, are in the first round of INDOT’s Charging the Crossroads program. The state transportation agency said it received more than 100 applications for charging stations at sites along Indiana’s Alternative Fuels Corridors, or AFCs.
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“Today’s announcement brings us one step closer to expanding reliable charging infrastructure across Indiana,” INDOT Commissioner Mike Smith said in the department’s announcement of the grants. “We look forward to working together with selected site owner-operators and contractors to build out the state’s EV charging network.”
As part of the federal NEVI program, charging stations must be installed every 50 miles along a state’s AFCs, within one mile of an intersection or interchange. Indiana’s AFCs include its interstate highways and 10 state and U.S. highways.
The NEVI program was created by the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law with the goal of deploying a national network of at least 500,000 electric vehicle charging stations by 2030. The intent is to reduce “range anxiety” and encourage wider adoption of electric vehicles.
The program is authorized at nearly $5 billion nationally over five years, and Indiana expects to receive nearly $100 million in NEVI funds to expand the state’s charging network, INDOT said.
NEVI will fund up to 80% of the installation of EV charging stations and up to five years of operations and maintenance. INDOT estimates the 39 awards announced Thursday will account for approximately $30 million in federal NEVI funding.
INDOT said it expects the installation of charging stations to begin in 2025. A second round of Charging the Crossroads grants is anticipated to open later this year.
Additional information, including a map of selected sites, is available at chargingthecrossroads.com.