Joe Biden’s election as President of the United States of America has been revolutionary, to say the least. Be it the unruly protests that affected the American law and order situation; or the flawless American vaccination rollout that saw a vast majority of Americans develop immunity against the deadly coronavirus, the Biden administration has done an impeccable job. Now the newly elected President of the United States of America looks to pursue something he was very expressive about - during his 2020 election campaign. He plans on installing about half a million EV charging stations across the United States. This will directly affect the number of electric cars manufactured and the general dependency of the American population on gas/fuel. Needless to mention, this approach will require massive investments and complete crowd support. As a result, there may be a host of benefits, including a direct and significant reduction in air pollution levels across the US. It could contribute hugely towards achieving President Biden’s promise of zeroing out emissions in the USA by 2050.
Only time will tell if the US President’s idea will pan out as planned. How is he planning to do this though? Let us take a detailed look at President Joe Biden’s plan to install 500,000 EV charging stations across the USA.
Why Set Up 500,000 EV Charging Stations?
The tide is slowly turning. There was a time when the general population was apprehensive about EVs. And their initial apprehension - largely down to performance-related issues and convenience - was justified. However, times have now changed. The EV manufacturers have improved and improvised over the course of time. The car community has accepted electric vehicles with their arms wide open in recent years. And not just the general population; EVs are a big hit with high-profile celebrities too. From Gal Gadot to Ben Affleck, most A-listers prefer to have an EV in their car collection these days. Hence, it is no surprise that President Biden and his administration are planning to push a proposal worth $2 trillion before Congress, which includes a $174 billion investment in electric vehicles. However, the plan is much more extensive than it sounds.
Potential Challenges
Currently, the USA has approximately 115,000 gas stations and 41,000 charging stations. This means that the administration will have to install at least an equal amount (115,000) of EV charging stations across the States before the EVIP (Electric Vehicle Investment Plan) can take off full throttle. Another hurdle in the path of this dream is the way EV chargers function. On one hand, your regular fuel stations take approximately a couple of minutes to get the tank full. On the other, EV chargers are way slower in comparison. For instance, an electric Nissan leaf vehicle could take as much as 30 minutes to charge fully i.e. if you can find a DC fast charger. However, those are rarely available and are almost always in use.
The second option is the installation of public chargers. To be fair, these aren’t nearly as good as DC chargers and could take anywhere between 4 to 8 hours to charge the very same car. Of course, they seem very convenient if your only other option is to use the old-fashioned 120-volt house wall charging outlet. That could almost take an entire day to charge the very same Nissan Leaf. This is probably one of the reasons most Americans leave their cars to charge when they sleep. Therefore, it only makes sense that Biden wants to install half a million public charging outlets for those who cannot charge their EVs at home.
A private study suggests that there has to be at least one charger for 10 to 15 electric cars. With that statistic in mind, it is safe to assume that half a million EV Charging Stations would cover approximately five to seven million electric cars across the country. Estimates suggest that there are currently about a million and a half electric cars on road in America today. Thus President Biden’s plan seems well calculated and spot-on to sustain both EV infrastructure development and Electric Automobile Investment over the course of time.
The Bigger Picture
Joe Biden has constantly reiterated that he will ensure that the United States of America achieves its goal of zero transmission by 2050. If the EV charging station pans out successfully, Biden will have to eventually ensure that all of the USA's 250 million cars go electric within the next three decades. That would require millions of more EV charging stations but it is fair to say that half a million charging stations could prove to be a good catalyst for change. It is a profitable trade, after all, to switch to greener pastures that eradicate emission, provide cost-efficiency, require low maintenance, and are a lot safer to drive. As long as we are driving in the right direction. We are counting on you, Mr. President.