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Benefits of Transportation Electrification in a Post Pandemic World
6/1/2021
The first three months of 2021 saw early actions from the Biden administration and strong commitments to transportation electrification made by automakers, utilities, and other key players in the U.S. electric vehicle market. This activity has increased the number and breadth of pathways that policymakers can pursue to accelerate the shift towards transportation electrification and capture more of the billions of dollars in investments committed to the technology worldwide. This paper outlines three key opportunities for the country to achieve success and rapidly decarbonize the transportation sector by taking decisive action at federal level, expanding state policy frameworks, and prioritizing underserved communities.
Authors: Smith, C.; Nigro, N.; Lepre, N.
Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Trends from the Alternative Fueling Station Locator: Fourth Quarter 2020
6/1/2021
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Alternative Fueling Station Locator contains information on public and private non-residential alternative fueling stations in the United States and Canada and currently tracks ethanol (E85), biodiesel, compressed natural gas, electric vehicle (EV) charging, hydrogen, liquefied natural gas, and propane stations. Of these fuels, EV charging continues to experience rapidly changing technology and growing infrastructure. This report provides a snapshot of the state of EV charging infrastructure in the United States in the fourth calendar quarter of 2020. Using data from the Station Locator, this report breaks down the growth of public and private charging infrastructure by charging level, network, and location. Additionally, this report measures the current state of charging infrastructure compared with the amount projected to meet charging demand by 2030. This information is intended to help transportation planners, policymakers, researchers, infrastructure developers, and others understand the rapidly changing landscape for EV charging.
Authors: Brown, A.; Lommele, S.; Schayowitz, A.; Klotz, E.
Town of Colonie Enhanced Development Regulations: Electric Vehicle Zoning Guidance & Best Practices
5/24/2021
Electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) requirements have become an area of interest to the Town of Colonie (Colonie) staff and planning board members. This report provides electric vehicle zoning guidance and best practices for Colonie codes. It includes a review of existing conditions in Colonie, a comprehensive plan and zoning audit, and general recommendations and best practices for municipalities to allow, require, and streamline the installation of EVSE.
Clean Cities Coalitions 2019 Activity Report
5/6/2021
Clean Cities coalition activities resulted in an energy use impact (EUI) of over 1 billion gasoline-gallons equivalent (GGE), comprised of net alternative fuels used and energy savings from efficiency projects, in 2019. Participation in vehicle and infrastructure development projects remained strong, as did alternative fuel use and resulting overall EUI. Clean Cities coalition activities reduce emissions as they impact energy use. Coalition-reported activities prevented nearly 5 million carbon dioxide-equivalent tons of emissions (only greenhouse gas [GHG] emissions are reported here; criteria pollutants and other emissions are not included in this report). Coalitions were successful in securing project grant awards from numerous (non-DOE) outside sources. For other Federal, State, and local agencies and private sector foundations, see funding section on page 24. The 82 project grant awards in 2019 generated $225 million in funds from coalition members and project partners along with $9.5 million in DOE grant funds. Coalitions also collected $1.2 million in stakeholder dues and $1.6 million in operational funds from host organizations. In macro terms, this supplemental funding represents nearly a 6:1 leveraging of the $38 million that was included in the VTO Technology Integration budget in Fiscal Year 2019. Clean Cities coordinators spent nearly 136,000 hours pursuing their coalitions' goals in 2019. The average coordinator is quite experienced and has held his or her position for at least eight years. Coordinators logged more than 3,525 outreach, education, and training activities in 2019, which reached an estimated 23 million people.
Authors: Singer, M.; Johnson, C.
Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Trends from the Alternative Fueling Station Locator: Third Quarter 2020
5/1/2021
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Alternative Fueling Station Locator contains information on public and private non-residential alternative fueling stations in the United States and Canada and currently tracks ethanol (E85), biodiesel, compressed natural gas, electric vehicle (EV) charging, hydrogen, liquefied natural gas, and propane stations. Of these fuels, EV charging continues to experience rapidly changing technology and growing infrastructure. This report provides a snapshot of the state of EV charging infrastructure in the United States in the third calendar quarter of 2020. Using data from the Station Locator, this report breaks down the growth of public and private charging infrastructure by charging level, network, and location. Additionally, this report measures the current state of charging infrastructure compared with the amount projected to meet charging demand by 2030. This information is intended to help transportation planners, policymakers, researchers, infrastructure developers, and others understand the rapidly changing landscape for EV charging.
Authors: Brown, A.; Lommele, S.; Schayowitz, A.; Klotz, E.
Electrifying Transit: A Guidebook for Implementing BEBs
4/20/2021
The use of battery electric bus (BEBs) fleets is becoming more attractive to cities seeking to reduce emissions and traffic congestion. While BEB fleets may provide benefits such as lower fuel and maintenance costs, improved performance, lower emissions, and energy security, many challenges need to be overcome to support BEB deployment. These include upfront cost premiums, planning burdens, BEB range, and unfamiliarity with BEB technology. To assist stakeholders with interest in deploying BEBs, this guidebook describes the decisions and considerations required for successful BEB implementation.
Authors: Aamodt, A.; Cory, K.; Coney, K.
Charging Station Design Guidance Toolbox
4/1/2021
This resource provides information collected by the Island Regional Transportation Planning Organization on electric vehicle (EV) charging equipment to assist municipal fleet and facility managers with vehicle electrification. It provides an overview of EV charger types, key considerations to selecting EV charging equipment, and recommendations for EV charging equipment placement and installation.
Assessment of Prospective Mileage-Based Fee System to Replace Fuel Taxes for Passenger Vehicles in Pennsylvania
3/1/2021
Historically, transportation infrastructure in the United States has been funded through a per-gallon fuel tax levied at the state- and federal-levels. The federal fuel tax has remained constant over the last thirty years, even as road construction and maintenance costs have risen steeply in that time. This funding gap is widened by advances in hybrid and electric vehicle technology, which have significantly improved fleet fuel-economy and reduced revenue from fuel tax. To address this, an increasing number of jurisdictions are considering programs where vehicles are taxed per-mile traveled, rather than per-gallon of fuel consumed. These mileage-based user fees (MBUFs) could replace federal and state fuel taxes and reduce the deficit in transportation infrastructure funding. This report develops high-resolution estimates of annual vehicle miles traveled (VMT) per vehicle aggregated at the state, county, and zip code level. Based on these estimates of VMT and fuel economy, researchers estimate the annual cost to vehicle owners of the existing fuel tax, and compare this cost against the cost of MBUF’s, at various rates.
Authors: Matthews, H. S.; Fischbeck, P. S.; Yuan, C.; Fan, Z.; Lyu, L.; Acharya, P. S.
Fuel Cell Buses in U.S. Transit Fleets: Current Status 2020
3/1/2021
This report, published annually, summarizes the progress of fuel cell electric bus (FCEB) development in the United States and discusses the achievements and challenges of introducing fuel cell propulsion in transit. The report provides a summary of results from evaluations performed by the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) National Renewable Energy Laboratory. This annual status report combines results from all FCEB demonstrations, tracks the progress of the FCEB industry toward meeting technical targets, documents the lessons learned, and discusses the path forward for commercial viability of fuel cell technology for transit buses. The data from these early FCEB deployments funded by the U.S. Department of Transportation, state agencies, and the private sector help to guide future early-stage research and development. The 2020 summary results primarily focus on the most recent year from January 2020 through July 2020.
Authors: Eudy, L.; Post, M.
Lithium-Ion Battery Supply Chain for E-Drive Vehicles in the United States: 2010–2020
3/1/2021
Understanding the battery supply chain is particularly important for the strategic planning and development of a battery recycling infrastructure to secure critical materials supply and enable a circular economy. Building on detailed monthly sales data, this report summarizes the manufacturing and production locations of lithium-ion (Li-ion, or LIB) battery cells and packs by make and model for PEVs sold in the U.S. from 2010 to 2020. It also summarizes the annual and cumulative Li-ion battery capacity installed in hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) sold in the U.S. Overall, there are about 20 different battery cell and pack manufacturers, which are currently supplying about 20 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of batteries annually for the U.S. PEV market.
Authors: Yan Zhou, David Gohlke, Luke Rush, Jarod Kelly, and Qiang Dai
User Perceptions of the Risks of Electric, Shared, and Automated Vehicles Remain Largely Unexplored
2/12/2021
Advocates of electric, shared, and automated vehicles (e-SAVs) envision a future in which people no longer need to drive their privately owned, petroleum-fueled vehicles. Instead, for daily travel they rely on fleets of electric, automated vehicles that offer travel services, including the option to share, or “pool,” rides with strangers. The design, deployment, and operation of e-SAVs will require widespread willingness of users to share with strangers vehicles that are capable of fully automated driving. To achieve the environmental and societal goals of e-SAVs it is critical to first understand and address safety and security concerns of potential and actual users. Researchers at the University of California, Davis, reviewed the literature to understand potential users’ perceptions of safety and security risks posed by intertwined social and technical systems of e-SAVs and proposed a framework to advance research, policy, and system design. This policy brief summarizes the findings of that work and provides policy implications.
Authors: Kurani, K.
Transportation Electrification in North Carolina
2/1/2021
This brief provides an overview of the state of the plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) market and deployment in North Carolina while also highlighting travel patterns and transit agency statistics, along with snapshots of PEV policy and program examples from other states. Statewide transportation electrification roadmaps and funding available through the Volkswagen Settlement have generated momentum in North Carolina and can be harnessed to accelerate the PEV market across the state and position it as a regional and national leader.
Authors: Smith, C.
National Park Service Bus Electrification Study: 2020 Report
2/1/2021
This report summarizes important considerations for implementing battery electric buses (BEBs) in the three national park fleets, detailing information about current buses at each fleet, electric bus demonstration vehicles, and performance evaluations of BEBs in Zion, Bryce, and Yosemite. Results include in-use data collection metrics such as average bus speed, energy usage per trip, and daily distance traveled. Also covered are effects of high heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning system use to both heat and cool the buses, emissions estimations before and after use of electric buses, operating costs, electric vehicle infrastructure, maintenance, and bus driver user experience survey information.
Authors: Gilleran, M.; Kotz, A.; Eudy, L.; Kelly, K.
EV Charging Needs Assessment: Identifying Needs and Opportunities for EV Fast Charging in Rural and Underserved Areas of the Intermountain West
2/1/2021
Corridors of the West (CORWest) is a three-year initiative to support plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) infrastructure investment and educational opportunities in rural and underserved areas of the intermountain west. A key first step under the project is to understand barriers to PEV adoption and, more specifically, direct current (DC) fast charger station deployment in rural and underserved areas of the intermountain west, and identify potential pathways for addressing these barriers. To understand barriers to EV adoption and station deployment in rural and underserved areas, the CORWest project team developed a questionnaire that was disseminated to select stakeholder groups to gather feedback. This report provides a summary of trends and typical issues being faced in the region and offers recommendations for ways to address high-priority needs and support PEV deployment and DC fast charger investment.
Authors: Powers, C.
Final Technical Report-WestSmart EV: Western Smart Plug-in Electric Vehicle Community Partnership
1/19/2021
The WestSmartEV (WSEV) project has accelerated adoption of electric vehicles (EV) throughout the PacifiCorp/Rocky Mountain Power’s service territory in the intermountain west by developing a large-scale, sustainable EV charging infrastructure network with coordinated EV adoption programs. The project objectives have strategically deployed 79 direct current fast charging to create two primary electric interstate highway corridors along I-15 and I-80. Additionally, it has incentivized installation of Level 2 chargers at workplace locations, incentivized the purchase of EVs, provided all electric solutions for first- and last-mile trips, provided centralized data collection, analysis, modeling, and tool development to inform investment and policy decisions, and developed education outreach materials and conducted workshops across the WSEV region. This report summarizes the WSEV project efforts.
Authors: Campbell, James
