KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Biden-Harris Administration has given Missouri approval to receive $35.7 million to add more electric vehicle charging ports along highways in the state.
The funding is part of Missouri's Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Deployment Plan, which the administration approved Tuesday, under the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) plan. The plan is funded by President Joe Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which was signed in November. The approval is head of schedule, according to a release.
On Sept. 16, Kansas Department of Transportation announced that it would receive $39.5 million toward its NEVI plan.
The approval dedicates over $1.5 billion in funding to all 50 states, as well as Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia, for electric vehicle charger expansion.
The plan aims to place the charging ports across 1,184 miles of designated corridors in Missouri. It will expand Missouri's current network of around 2,147 charging ports.
In the Kansas City area, the stretches of highway being considered as a charging station corridor include:
- Interstate 29 from St. Joseph to the Missouri/Iowa border
- Interstate 35 from Kansas City to the Missouri/Iowa border
- Interstate 49 from the Kansas City area to the Missouri/Arkansas border
- Interstate 70 from the Kansas City area to Wentzville, Missouri
In addition to expanding charging ports nationwide, NEVI funding can also be used to operate and maintain the stations, mapping analysis related to electrical vehicle charging infrastructure, upgrading existing charging infrastructure and installing on-site electrical service equipment. It can also be used for community and stakeholder engagement, workforce development and data sharing.
Acting Federal Highway Administrator Stephanie Pollack said the funding will make driving an electric vehicle "more convenient and affordable" and will "serve as the backbone" of a country-wide charging network.
More information on the Missouri Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Deployment Plan can be found online.
