It may get easier to charge electric vehicles in Alexandria.
Currently, most electric vehicle charging stations in Alexandria are inside apartment or condo buildings (only for use by residents of those buildings) or at hotels (for guests only). Many homeowners have installed their own chargers at home for personal use.
However, there are very few operational, publicly-accessible EV charging stations in Alexandria.
That is set to change. On Saturday, the City Council will consider an ordinance "to establish the process to solicit and grant a franchise to use certain public property to design, install, own, operate, maintain, repair, upgrade, and remove electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) for the use and benefit of the public...."
The winning company would get a franchise license in Alexandria for no fewer than 10 years, but can be transferred to a different company if needed.
Alexandria residents are adopting EVs at a faster rate than the average nationwide rate. There are more than 3,000 EVs licensed in Alexandria currently. Residents who cannot charge at home face significant barriers to EV adoption. Installing an EV charging station at a home usually costs more than $1,000 if done properly.
The city has identified 27 possible locations for publicly available EV chargers. Many of the potential locations are in Old Town, with others scattered across the city.
Proposals will be due in September with a potential award announced in December.
