Akron Reporter

 Last week, the City received the final report from the Public Facility Electric Vehicle (EV) Planning Taskforce. The Taskforce issued several recommendations related to the need for the City to prioritize buildout of a public EV charging network that focuses on the needs of residents who do not have access to home charging. View the full report here.

The Taskforce was made of up 50 members representing the City, County of Summit, University of Akron, AMATS, Gateway Group, Welty, First Energy, Akron Energy, Akron METRO, and several local electric vehicle owners/residents. They came up with a list of recommendations for the City in relation to a future EV charging network.

These recommendations include:

Launch a pilot EV Carshare program using 10 locations and 12 cars to both introduce EVs to the Akron marketplace and offer affordable mobility options to access health care, government services, workforce opportunities, and groceries.

Utilize a public-private partnership to build out a community EV network to ensure continued maintenance and optimal utilization of the chargers.

Require that all new residential buildings are "EV-Capable" in anticipation that each residential unit could have at least one electrical car.

Solicit public input on "development zones" to determine how to prioritize siting Level 2 charging stations that address areas with little access to home charging.

Due to the expected rise in electric vehicle ownership and the affordability projections, the Taskforce initially projects the need for more than 300 Level 2 and 3 community charging stations in Akron by 2027. By 2032, the Taskforce identified a need for more than 750 public charging stations. The Taskforce recommends the use of the following planning benchmarks in initially siting charging stations: a Level 2 charging station within a 10-minute walk of any Akron residences; a Level 3 charging station within a 10-minute drive of any Akron residence; and prioritize buildout of Level 2 public charging stations by considering residential locations with little access to home charging opportunities first.

The City is already in talks with Sway Mobility, a carshare service platform, to explore a carshare pilot program here in Akron. Additionally, Akron recently launched the Zencity Engage platform to solicit public input on a variety of projects including development zones for charging stations and interest in an EV carshare program. Learn more about these and other projects here and provide your feedback.  

Today, Akron has also issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) seeking a partner or partners to help create Community EV Charging Station Infrastructure. This partner will help develop an expansive electric vehicle charging network. They will ultimately propose a plan for purchasing, installing, owning/operating and maintaining an equitable and accessible system of EV charging stations in Akron. View the full RFP on the city website here.

“I want to thank all the members of the EV Planning Taskforce for the time and knowledge they contributed to this report and the recommendations they’ve provided,” said Mayor Horrigan. “We’ve already taken steps to implement some of these recommendations and put Akron at the forefront of the future of transportation, as we often have been in the past. The goal is to create a network of EV charging stations that will be equitably placed and well-utilized throughout Akron to allow all our residents to see the benefits of EV infrastructure.”

Original source can be found here.