The state of Maryland recently announced the installation of eight electric vehicle charging stations at BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport as part of the Maryland Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program, which is bringing 65 charging stations to the Baltimore-Washington region.
Maryland’s investments in electric vehicle infrastructure have placed the Baltimore region at the forefront of electric vehicle readiness in the emerging industry.
The announcement came two weeks after the conclusion of the 2011 session of the Maryland General Assembly, during which three important measures for promoting electric vehicles in Maryland were passed.
These bills will provide consumers a $400 tax credit towards installation of electric vehicle charging stations in their homes, require the Public Service Commission to establish a pilot study on how best to encourage off-peak charging of electric vehicles and to establish a statewide electric vehicle planning council. These bills build on the Electric Vehicle Tax Credit bill and Electric Vehicle HOV bill, both of which were passed during the 2010 legislative session.
“While other states are sitting idly by, Maryland continues to harness the innovation that will move us into the new economy,” said Gov. Martin O’Malley. “Thanks to our federal partners, we are making vital investments in electric vehicle infrastructure, positioning Maryland as a national leader in this emerging industry, and are moving closer to our goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions 25% by 2020.”
Last June, the Maryland Energy Administration (MEA) announced a $500,000 investment in electric vehicle infrastructure, funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, to promote a cleaner, more efficient transportation system in Maryland. That investment fueled the construction of 65 charging stations throughout the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area, providing the necessary infrastructure to allow electric vehicle owners to travel throughout the region with confidence.
Of those 65 charging stations, 55 are being developed by the Baltimore Electric Vehicle Initiative in partnership with two Maryland-based companies, SemaConnect, of Annapolis, and Autoflex, of Baltimore. The remaining 10 stations will be developed by the City of Baltimore and located in various parking garages throughout the city.
In addition, the Ford Motor Co. recently included the Baltimore region as one of the Top 25 EV Ready Cities in America, citing Maryland’s position as a national leader for establishing best practices for electric vehicle preparedness. Just days later, California-based Coulomb Technologies announced that it planned to build 50 to 100 new electric vehicle charging stations as part of its $37 million expansion of its ChargePoint America program.
In addition to installing electric vehicle charging stations at the airport, the MEA is helping BWI Marshall invest in cost-saving energy upgrades at its Hourly and Daily garages that will collectively save the airport 3,288 megawatt-hours annually — or enough energy to fuel approximately 8.9 million miles of electric vehicle driving.
The energy savings come as a result of two programs from MEA: $500,000 from the Project Sunburst program, which will facilitate the installation of a 503 kilowatt solar array; and a $1 million loan from the State Agency Loan Program, which is being used in a project to replace the Hourly and Daily garages’ existing high pressure sodium lighting fixtures with new high efficiency T8 fluorescent fixtures.
