Car charging stations are popping up like spring flowers this Earth Day.
The Pennsylvania Turnpike officially unveiled its charging stations Monday and Pittsburgh International Airport followed suit Tuesday.
The chargers on the Turnpike were installed this year at a pair of service plazas; Bowmansville Service Plaza in Lancaster County located eastbound at milepost 290 and King of Prussia in Montgomery County, located westbound at milepost 328.
It took the cooperation of two government agencies and a private corporation to get the stations installed.
“Through an Alternative Fuels Investment grant from the Department of Environmental Protection that was worth $1 million, and it was also made possible by the Car Charging Group of Miami and their investment of $1 million,” said PA Turnpike CEO Mark Compton who also highlighted the $500,000 infrastructure investment made by his agency.
The EV charging stations provide 220 volts with 32 amps of power and are located near the rear of the plaza parking lots. Customers can pay for a charging session with a Blink InCard issued by The Charging Group, or by calling a toll-free number to use a credit card.
DEP Regional Manager Lynn Langer said she hopes by continuing to build out the car charging infrastructure in the state it will encourage more of those on the fence about the technology to make the decision to purchase an electric car.
“The environmental benefits of these low emission or no emission vehicles is tremendous,” said Langer.
The Allegheny County Airport Authority also used Earth Day to officially open its six electric car charging spaces. The spots at in the short-term garage are located on the roof and second levels of the garage.
“Special green and white markings have been painted to identify the spaces. Additionally, a regulation traffic sign, marked with “Power Up,” has been hung above each of the six spaces,” said airport spokesperson Joann Jenny.
