Arizona EV charger plan approved with Tucson I-19 link

Arizona’s plan to install electric-vehicle chargers along interstate highways in the state — including Interstate 19 between Tucson and Nogales — has been approved by federal regulators, allowing the state to start spending about $77 million in federal funding.

The Arizona Department of Transportation submitted its draft proposal to the Federal Highway Administration in August and received approval this week, along with 34 other states that had submitted EV plans.

ADOT said $11.3 million in funding was made available immediately, and another $16.3 million is expected in October to start implementing the plan.

The money will fund EV charging infrastructure along roadways designated as “alternative fuel corridors,” currently identified as all five of the federal Interstate Highways throughout the state — Interstates 8, 10, 15, 17, 19 and 40 — which account for more than 20% of all the vehicle miles traveled in Arizona, ADOT says.

ADOT in its original EV plan had designated I-19 only as a “proposed” alt-fuel corridor, but added it as a designated EV route along with the others after soliciting public comments on the plan.

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Other non-interstate corridors will be determined and included in the plan in future years, and the plan will next be updated in August.

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Overall, $76.5 million has been allocated for this program in Arizona over the next five years through the recently enacted federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

ADOT says its next step is to solicit and award contracts to upgrade existing stations as well as develop new locations along designated alternative fuel corridors.

Advertising for bids to upgrade existing stations will begin in the spring, followed by bid solicitations in next fall for new construction. The plan calls for stations to be no more than 50 miles apart wherever possible.

In many cases, stations will be located where there is already infrastructure in place, such as truck stops, roadside lodging, restaurants and shopping centers, ADOT said.

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