In order to avoid competing with private business, the Shoshoni Town Council has decided not to install an electric vehicle charging station in town.
The energy company that proposed installing the charging station is now working with a private business in Shoshoni to “provide services there,” Mayor Joel Highsmith said during a meeting last week.
If that deal goes through, Highsmith said Shoshoni will still be “on the maps” that electric vehicle drivers use to locate charging stations along their travel routes.
He noted that the state is considering ways to “generate some revenue from these electric vehicles” by instituting something “like a gas tax” at electric vehicle charging stations.
“That’s been brought up,” Highsmith said, adding, “(Electric vehicles) are coming eventually.”
Federal funding
Last fall, the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act allocated $7.5 billion for states to enhance their electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and Wyoming expects to receive almost $24 million of that money in the coming years, according to the Wyoming Department of Transportation.
To prepare for the funding, the state has developed a Zero Emission Vehicle Strategy and is now working on its required National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure plan, WYDOT said.
The public comment period for the infrastructure plan is open through July 27.
To submit a comment, email [email protected] or contact WYDOT using the topic “grants” and the subtopic “electric vehicles.”