Click for more Information.
The latest data in the BTS National Transportation Atlas Database released today show that recent growth in alternative fueling stations for vehicles has been notable for what it includes, as well as what it doesn’t. As of 1 April, the US had more than 70,000 alternative fueling stations up nearly 90% since 1 April 2020, when it had fewer than 40,000 such stations around the country. Alternative transportation fuels include a variety of products, including ethanol, biodiesel, propane, hydrogen, natural gas, and electricity.
Alternative energy sources have been at the forefront of strategies to reduce carbon emissions. This is especially true in transportation, the sector responsible for the most greenhouse gas emissions in the US. However, the US has more than 280,000,000 registered vehicles, begging the question what are we doing about the planet killing use of existing fuels for the vast majority of vehicles that are on and will remain on the roads? Electric vehicle (EV) charging stations have been growing faster than any other fueling categories and now account for about 84% of all alternative fueling stations.
EV charging stations growth speed up dramatically around 2012 on the heels of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which included up to $2 billion in federal funding advanced battery manufacturing and up to $400 million for transportation electrification projects. Over the course of 2012, the number of EV charging stations tripled, with an additional 4100 stations opening that year. Between 2013 and 2020, the trend continued with a nearly 300% increase in the total number of EV charging stations, for a total of ~32,000 stations. Between 1 January 2021, and 1 April 2023, another 19,000 stations opened, increasing the number of electric vehicle charging stations by nearly 50% in just over two years.1 California is home to the highest number of EV charging stations in the country.
EV charging stations – like wealth and taxes – are not evenly distributed in the US. Of the more than 60,000 EV charging stations, California is home to ~16,000 or about 21%. New York, Florida, Texas, and Massachusetts close out the top five states with the greatest number of EV stations, with at most 2500 stations each. Normalizing the data per 1,000 road lane miles2, Washington, DC had the highest number of stations at 102 per 1000 lane miles, followed by Hawaii then California. Arkansas was the leader in terms of its rate of charging station growth from 2022 to 2023; followed by North Dakota, Michigan, Louisiana, and New Jersey. All five states increased the number of their electric vehicle charging stations by more than 25%.
For EV stations with a designated facility type 3, hotels, car dealers, and shopping malls were home to the greatest number of electric vehicle charging stations across the country in April 2023. Parking lots , garages, and federal government facilities followed.
Wade into the Statistical Morass
To explore aspects of the alternative fuel stations dataset, visit the Alternative Fuel Station Locator tool at https://afdc.energy.gov/stations#/find/nearest.
The Joint Office of Energy and Transportation offers resources including an electric vehicle charging station locator app for iPhone and Android as well as maps and other tools at https://driveelectric.gov/resources/.
The dataset used by AutoInformed is available for download and use from the National Transportation Atlas Database (NTAD) at: https://geodata.bts.gov/datasets/usdot::alternative-fueling-stations/explore.
Inevitable Footnotes
- Statistics from the Alternative Fuels Data Center (AFDC), https://afdc.energy.gov/data/10332
- Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Highway Statistics 2020, Functional System Lane-Length – 2020 Lane Miles, Table HM-60, https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2020/hm60.cfm
- About 44,000 EV stations did not have a designated facility type as of April 1, 2023.
Alternative Fueling Stations Way Up Since 2020. So What?
Click for more Information.
The latest data in the BTS National Transportation Atlas Database released today show that recent growth in alternative fueling stations for vehicles has been notable for what it includes, as well as what it doesn’t. As of 1 April, the US had more than 70,000 alternative fueling stations up nearly 90% since 1 April 2020, when it had fewer than 40,000 such stations around the country. Alternative transportation fuels include a variety of products, including ethanol, biodiesel, propane, hydrogen, natural gas, and electricity.
Alternative energy sources have been at the forefront of strategies to reduce carbon emissions. This is especially true in transportation, the sector responsible for the most greenhouse gas emissions in the US. However, the US has more than 280,000,000 registered vehicles, begging the question what are we doing about the planet killing use of existing fuels for the vast majority of vehicles that are on and will remain on the roads? Electric vehicle (EV) charging stations have been growing faster than any other fueling categories and now account for about 84% of all alternative fueling stations.
EV charging stations growth speed up dramatically around 2012 on the heels of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which included up to $2 billion in federal funding advanced battery manufacturing and up to $400 million for transportation electrification projects. Over the course of 2012, the number of EV charging stations tripled, with an additional 4100 stations opening that year. Between 2013 and 2020, the trend continued with a nearly 300% increase in the total number of EV charging stations, for a total of ~32,000 stations. Between 1 January 2021, and 1 April 2023, another 19,000 stations opened, increasing the number of electric vehicle charging stations by nearly 50% in just over two years.1 California is home to the highest number of EV charging stations in the country.
EV charging stations – like wealth and taxes – are not evenly distributed in the US. Of the more than 60,000 EV charging stations, California is home to ~16,000 or about 21%. New York, Florida, Texas, and Massachusetts close out the top five states with the greatest number of EV stations, with at most 2500 stations each. Normalizing the data per 1,000 road lane miles2, Washington, DC had the highest number of stations at 102 per 1000 lane miles, followed by Hawaii then California. Arkansas was the leader in terms of its rate of charging station growth from 2022 to 2023; followed by North Dakota, Michigan, Louisiana, and New Jersey. All five states increased the number of their electric vehicle charging stations by more than 25%.
For EV stations with a designated facility type 3, hotels, car dealers, and shopping malls were home to the greatest number of electric vehicle charging stations across the country in April 2023. Parking lots , garages, and federal government facilities followed.
Wade into the Statistical Morass
To explore aspects of the alternative fuel stations dataset, visit the Alternative Fuel Station Locator tool at https://afdc.energy.gov/stations#/find/nearest.
The Joint Office of Energy and Transportation offers resources including an electric vehicle charging station locator app for iPhone and Android as well as maps and other tools at https://driveelectric.gov/resources/.
The dataset used by AutoInformed is available for download and use from the National Transportation Atlas Database (NTAD) at: https://geodata.bts.gov/datasets/usdot::alternative-fueling-stations/explore.
Inevitable Footnotes