San Diego Gas & Electric has just revealed four new fast charging stations at a popular truck stop in Otay Mesa, bringing electric vehicle convenience to California’s transportation industry.
Drivers of all vehicle sizes now have access to the same convenient high-power charging capabilities, from delivery vans and buses down to passenger cars.
Installed at Truck Net, near the U.S./Mexico border, 250-kilowatt chargers provide a much faster charge to medium-duty box trucks; they can reach 20%-80% in under an hour and 100% in two hours or less.
As a major point of entry into California, nearly one million commercial trucks and five million privately owned vehicles pass through the Otay Mesa Port of Entry yearly. A significant amount are left idling while waiting to cross, resulting in an alarming increase in air pollution throughout San Diego.
“Reducing air pollution and tailpipe emissions are top priorities for our region and California especially in equity priority communities, and SDG&E is committed to building the infrastructure needed to enable businesses and residents to adopt electric vehicles and other clean technologies,” said SDG&E CEO Caroline Winn in a press release. “We all share the goal of building a cleaner, more sustainable and healthier future.”
At a recent event, California Energy Commissioner Patty Monahan and San Diego County Board of Supervisors Chair Nora Vargas were among the dignitaries who joined Winn in attendance. In addition to her duties as chairperson for SANDAG’s board, Vargas also holds seats on both the Air Resources Board and county-level Air Pollution Control District board.
“Air pollution doesn’t recognize national boundaries, and to accommodate the transition to zero-emission trucks on both sides of the border, it’s critically important that we rapidly scale up the charging network,” Monahan said. “The California Energy Commission is helping fund this project and others across the state to build a better and more equitable charging infrastructure system for both cars and trucks.”
The CEC’s Clean Transportation Program funded the chargers with a $200,000 grant. Over the course of 14 years, this program has provided a total of over one billion dollars in alternative fuel and vehicle technology projects- an investment that will phase out at the end of this year.
SDG&E is leading the charge in providing fleets with reliable and cost-effective electric vehicle charging infrastructure through its Power Your Drive for Fleets program. By delivering incentives and resources, this innovative initiative aims to make transitioning medium and heavy-duty operations easier.
The project is a step in the direction of Gov. Gavin Newson’s executive order requiring sales of all new passenger vehicles to be zero-emissions by 2035, with all medium and heavy-duty trucks achieving zero-emissions by 2045.
With a commitment to clean energy, California leads the nation with 80,000 public and private electric vehicle chargers. The majority of these — 90% — are Level 2 15-35 mile per hour charging stations while 10% are DC fast charge locations spread across SDG&E’s coverage area according to an official statement from the utility.
Source: truckinginfo
