The City of Pittsburgh has received a $189,403 grant from the Pennsylvania Energy Development Authority as part of their COVID-19 Restart Grants. The grant will be used to purchase and install 30 Level 2 chargers and a DC fast charger for the city’s growing electric vehicle fleet.  Level 2 chargers will typically fully charge a vehicle plugged in for six to eight hours or overnight for the city feet, and DC fast chargers deliver a faster charge in 20-25 minutes.  

As part of the city’s Climate Action Plan goals to reduce transportation-related emissions, increase vehicle electrification, and convert to a 100% fossil-fuel free fleet, this grant will fund the installation of 30 additional electric vehicle chargers and required back end electrical infrastructure for the city’s fleet of sedans that park at the Second Avenue parking lot and a DC fast charger at the city garage. Using this grant with a previously awarded Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection Alternative Fuel Incentive grant, the Second Avenue parking lot will become the city’s main electric fleet charging depot, where a total of 70 electric vehicles are on track to be converted and charged by 2026.  

The city currently has 26 electric vehicles used by the Department of Permits, Licenses, and Inspections and other departments that charge at 10 solar charging stations at the Second Avenue Parking Lot and nine chargers at the city's motorpool lot.  The 26 electric sedans currently produce an annual savings of roughly $13,640 in avoided fuel costs, 8,812 gallons of gasoline, and 72.1 metric tons of carbon dioxide.  

The Pennsylvania Energy Development Authority is an independent public financing authority that supports clean, advanced energy projects in Pennsylvania. As part of the COVID-19 Restart Grants, they awarded over $1.7 million in grants to 11 projects statewide that promote energy efficiency, solar energy, high-performance building, and electric vehicle charging projects that were halted by the pandemic.  A full list of grants is available here.