Colorado announced it is approaching having a fully built-out electric vehicle fast-charging network and is rapidly closing some of its last remaining charging gaps.
The state said new stations are opening and dozens more are under development as state and federal investment increasingly target the last gaps in the fast-charging network that reaches across the state, through major travel corridors and into rural communities.
“Colorado is the national leader in electric vehicles. Colorado is making historic investments in a fast and convenient EV charging network, which is one reason why EVs make up a big percentage of new cars sold in Colorado,” Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said. “EVs are fun, quiet, clean, easier to maintain, and thanks to our expansive charging network, convenient to charge all across Colorado.”
The state has approximately 486 public EV fast-charging locations, creating a network for residents and visitors to easily charge EVs. The funding for the network comes from multiple sources, including funding from federal National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program(NEVI), the State of Colorado’s Community Access Enterprise (CAE), the State EVE Fund and the private sector.
The network includes 17 NEVI Program fast-charging location, with another 33 under development. Additionally, the Colorado Department of Transportation and Colorado Energy Office are evaluating a new round of applications for DC Fast-Charging Plaza Grants, designed to fill in the gaps in the statewide network.
“Colorado has reached the point where we are no longer simply building the foundation of an EV fast-charging network — we are filling in the remaining gaps and making that network increasingly useful for travel throughout the state,” CDOT Executive Director Shoshana Lew said. “That’d be a huge accomplishment anywhere, but especially in a state like Colorado, where our geography includes mountain passes, remote rural highways and communities separated by considerable distances.”
As of the end of August, 83 percent of the state’s highway network is within 30 miles of a fast-charging station, more than double the coverage in August 2020.