Burlington has received a federal grant that is set to increase electric vehicle charging in the city six-fold.
The roughly $5 million awarded to the Burlington Electric Department will go to installing 200 new public charging stations in the city.
The utility said it has committed to using at least 40% of the award to install chargers in neighborhoods that meet federal environmental justice criteria. That includes places with a high density of renters who don't have off-street charging, like the Old North End, downtown and parts of the South End.
"That also is going to include areas where we have, you know, a higher rental population, where we have, you know, more of the community that might, you know, have different barriers to driving electric," said Darren Springer, general manager of the Burlington Electric Department.
Springer said the utility plans to install more than 150 Level 2 chargers across town, and almost 50 Level 3 fast chargers.
The latter will let people charge their cars in a half hour or less.
Springer said Burlington Electric hopes this will help more people in the Queen City decide they can switch to an electric vehicle.
"Our team is excited about the opportunity, over a multi-year period, to make what we really see as a generational investment in EV charging and in the electrification effort for Burlington," Springer said.
The funding comes from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Burlington Electric was the only entity in Vermont to receive a grant in this round of awards from the federal Department of Transportation.
Burlington Electric is sourcing community input on locations for new charging stations. Burlington residents and visitors can make suggestions here.
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