Washington Builds First EV-Friendly National Scenic Byway

In his recent State of the Union address, President Obama reaffirmed his commitment to have the United States become the first country to put 1 million electric vehicles on the road by 2015.

Meeting this lofty goal will mean establishing a solid infrastructure to support EV’s and their drivers, and that will require installing more than a few charging stations along the nation’s most popular highways.

Although it’s a daunting task, the state of Washington is wasting no time rolling out an aggressive Electric Highway plan, starting with Highway 2’s 90 mile stretch between Monroe and Peshastin, currently known as Stevens Pass Greenway.

In 2009, Washington approved a bill to create the Sustainable Energy Trust Fund: money that could be used to finance energy efficiency and small-scale renewable energy projects.

Now those funds will be used to installing 2 to 3 fast-charging EV stations along Highway 2–turning the popular roadway into the nation’s first electric vehicle-friendly National Scenic Byway route.

As Douglas Reiser writes for the Builder’s Counsel Blog, “the Highway 2 upgrade is only a small part of Washington’s Electric Highway plan. The State’s larger plan includes the installation of EV charging stations all along I-5. After the completion of the two stage construction process, Washington will have a border to border electric highway.”

Live in Washington? Tell us how you feel about the state’s plan to build the first electric highway system!

Also Check Out:
12 Myths About Electric Vehicles
Car of the Year? Zero-Emission Nissan Leaf
Michigan Retail Chain Installs EV Charging Stations

Image Credit: Builder’s Counsel Blog

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

Marianne G.

11:27AM PDT on May 13, 2013

Thanks for sharing.

May 13
send a green star

Danuta W.

3:19AM PDT on Nov 2, 2012

Thank you for sharing.

November 2
send a green star

Jo A.

7:50PM PST on Dec 15, 2011

Good move! Wshing you success!

December 15
send a green star

Dave C.

5:33PM PDT on Aug 31, 2011

this is good news...but I am still wondering (a) what is the electricity source (coal vs gas vs clean?) and (b) the other care2 post on this only mentions being able to charge certain "Japanese models" --- why not a system that also support Chevy Volt and Ford (?) Focus Electric Cars.....