Car Manufacturers, Utilities, and Other Stakeholders Discuss Priorities for the Northeast EV Network

Private- and public-sector organizations from across the country, including General Motors, Tesla, Coca-Cola, and Northeast Utilities, gathered with representatives from northeast states and clean cities coalitions recently to discuss ways to expedite the deployment of electric vehicles. 

The dialogue was the first stakeholder event held to discuss next steps for the Northeast Electric Vehicle Network. The states launched the initiative in October. 

A couple of suggestions raised by participants included:

• Identifying best practices for incentives (both monetary and non-monetary) to encourage the sale of electric vehicles and the development of electric vehicle infrastructure.
• Taking action to remove obstacles to electric vehicle penetration (e.g., establishing consistent energy regulation, building codes, and zoning requirements regionwide, and pursuing training opportunities for the electricians and municipal personnel that will need to install and certify charging stations quickly.)

The event was held by the Transportation Climate Initiative (TCI) and facilitated by the Georgetown Climate Center. Earlier in the week, Transportation and Climate Initiative jurisdictions also discussed sustainable community policies throughout the region and worked with experts to begin a conversation about measuring progress to achieve the group's energy, environmental, and economic development goals.

To view additional photos from this event, click here for the Northeast Electric Vehicle Discussion or here for the sustainable communities workshop.