Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and the City Council have approved the purchase, installation, and deployment of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in various city facilities. The effort will be enabled through the city’s partnership with Greenlots, an EV charging solutions provider and member of the Shell group, and driven by the Houston Climate Action Plan, a strategy that sets out to  reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve regional air quality, and build climate resilience.

The city plans to convert an estimated 8,000 of its non-emergency, light-duty municipal fleet vehicles to EVs by 2030. Greenlots will install 41 EV charging stations throughout Houston, creating a charging infrastructure that will power the city’s electric fleet. The city’s EV fleet charging infrastructure will be monitored and managed by Greenlots SKY EV charging network software, helping to inform efficient charging site utilization and operations. Initial use of the EV chargers will be dedicated to municipal vehicles. Over time, the chargers will be integrated with a citywide charging infrastructure for public use.

The Houston Climate Action Plan is a science-based, community-driven strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, meet the Paris Agreement goal of carbon neutrality by 2050, and lead a global energy transition. Shifting regional and municipal fleets to EVs and installing electric vehicle charging stations at public-facing city facilities are major milestones set forth in the plan.