Skip to content
CapRadio

CapRadio

signal status listen live donate
listen live donate signal status
listen live donate signal status
  • News
    • beats
    • State Government
    • Environment
    • Health Care
    • Business
    • Arts and Lifestyle
    • Food and Sustainability
    • PolitiFact California
    • California Dream
    • Videos
    • Photos
  • Music
    • genres
    • Classical
    • Jazz
    • Roots
    • Eclectic
    • Videos
    • Daily Playlist
  • Programs + Podcasts
    • news
    • Morning Edition
    • All Things Considered
    • Marketplace
    • Insight
    • The View From Here
    • music
    • Acid Jazz
    • At the Opera
    • Classical Music
    • Connections
    • Excellence in Jazz
    • Hey, Listen!
    • Insight Music
    • K-ZAP on CapRadio
    • Mick Martin's Blues Party
    • Programs A-Z
    • Podcast Directory
  • Schedules
    • News
    • Music
    • ClassicalStream
    • JazzStream
    • Weekly Schedule
    • Daily Playlist
  • Community
    • Events Calendar
    • CapRadio Garden
    • CapRadio Reads
    • CapRadio Travels
    • Ticket Giveaways
  • Support
    • Evergreen Gift
    • One-Time Gift
    • Corporate Support / Underwriting
    • Vehicle Donation
    • Stock Gift
    • Legacy Gift
    • Endowment Gift
    • Volunteering
    • Benefits
    • Member FAQ
    • e‑Newsletter
    • Drawing Winners
    • Thank You Gifts
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Close Menu
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 

Starting With Low-Income Communities, California Plans To Jumpstart Transition To Emission Free Vehicle Charging

  •  Ezra David Romero 
Thursday, October 15, 2020 | Sacramento, CA
Listen
/
Update RequiredTo play audio, update browser or Flash plugin.
AP Photo/Richard Vogel, File

This Oct. 17, 2018, file photo shows a Chevrolet Volt hybrid car charging at a ChargePoint charging station at a parking garage in Los Angeles.

AP Photo/Richard Vogel, File

With California vowing to only sell emission-free cars and trucks by 2035, the state is now hoping to jumpstart that process by investing millions into low-income communities for charging stations. 

Last month California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced all new cars and trucks in the state must be sold as zero-emission by 2035. The executive order is a climate adaptation strategy and part of the state’s climate goal of having 5 million zero-emission cars on roads by 2030. Right now there’s only about 700,000 in the state. 

“This is the most impactful step our state can take to fight climate change,” Newsom said in September. He says more than 50% of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions are from the transportation sector — 80% of smog-forming pollution and 95% of toxic diesel emissions.

One question that lingered after the order is over how and where all those cars will get fueled. The California Energy Commission, CEC, this week announced a plan to help make the transition with $384 million to be used by 2023. It’s part of a more than decade-old program that has provided $900 million for alternative fuels and to achieve carbon neutrality by 2045, the same year all new commercial utility vehicles will need to be emission-free.

“Batteries are becoming cheaper than internal combustion engines,” said CEC lead commissioner for transportation Patty Monahan. “What we're trying to do is speed up that transition. We're trying to jumpstart it.”

Monahan says the plan focuses on closing existing gaps in the infrastructure needed to support the governor’s order to phase out gas powered cars and trucks. It also hopes to aid in COVID-19 recovery with $10 million to “build infrastructure while supporting job creation, economic development, and equity.”

She says to get millions of emission-free cars on roads will take significant investment from the private sector, and this funding is meant to focus on where the private sector won’t. 

“This is going to be a full-scale transition from your old 20th-century gas station to a much more distributed system of refueling vehicles,” she said. 

Since the private sector is already building a network of charging stations — think of Tesla charging stations in parking garages — Monahan says around 50% of the new funding is focused on building accessible charging stations within disadvantaged communities. This starts with electrifying charging at or near apartment complexes and other multifamily dwellings.

“The market might just go to downtown San Francisco where there's a lot of vehicles and we're thinking, ‘How do we make this electrification for all?’” she questioned. “How do we make sure that if you live in Huron you can charge your vehicle?”

Of the commission's more than 600 projects and programs, 33% are currently in disadvantaged or low-income communities. 

“A lot of these dollars ... are going to more rural areas,” said CEC spokesperson Lindsay Buckley.  “We're doing that deliberately. We're trying to fill these gaps to make sure that everyone has access to these vehicles and to the charging that's going to get them where they need to go.”

But both Buckley and Monahan admit this round of funding still leaves a significant gap in what’s needed to meet the 2030 and 2035 targets, which they say are based on goals that Gov. Jerry Brown set up. 

“Gov. Brown had a goal of having 250,000 chargers for 1.5 million electric vehicles, and those goals need to be adjusted upward to reflect the new executive order,” Monahan said. 

The gaps even after this new investment will include thousands of charging stations. 

“We have a charger gap, we have a hydrogen fueling gap, but we are making good progress,” she says. “I do think … the governor's executive order is stimulating investments.”

Monahan says it’s important that California make this transition as a sign for the rest of the country that climate adaptation strategies can be successful for all residents, not just the wealthy. 

She says there are already 34 zero-emission vehicle related manufacturers based in California and that the state is becoming the “new Michigan” in terms of electrifying the nation's fleet. 

“This transition should benefit everything,” she said. “Electricity is much cheaper than gasoline … It could be the equivalent of about $1 per gallon to charge your electric vehicle. The data indicates that for battery electric vehicles they will be cheaper than their conventional internal combustion counterparts within the next three to five years.”


Follow us for more stories like this

CapRadio provides a trusted source of news because of you.  As a nonprofit organization, donations from people like you sustain the journalism that allows us to discover stories that are important to our audience. If you believe in what we do and support our mission, please donate today.

Donate Today  

Ezra David Romero

Environment Reporter

Here at CapRadio, I report on all kinds of stories on our environment. Everything from “floodplain fatties” to comparing the Green New Deal to California's climate policies to podcasts like Yosemiteland and TahoeLand.  Read Full Bio 

 @ezraromero Email Ezra David Romero

Coronavirus Newsletter

Get answers to your questions, the latest updates and easy access to the resources you need, delivered to your inbox.

 

Want to know what to expect? Here's a recent newsletter.

Thanks for subscribing!

We'll send you weekly emails so you can stay informed about the coronavirus in California.

Browse all newsletters

More Stories

Nicolas COMTE / Unsplash

As Californians Rack Up $1 Billion in Water Debt, Advocates Fear Relief Could Come Too Late

January 22, 2021

Harris Will Leave Senate Seat Monday, Set To Return As Tiebreaking Vice President

January 17, 2021

Andrew Nixon / CapRadio

Gov. Gavin Newsom Navigates Compounding Crises — And A Potential Recall — Halfway Through His Term

January 25, 2021

Most Viewed

California Coronavirus Updates: California’s Ban On Indoor Worship Upheld By Appeals Court

High-Speed Rail In California Moves Along, But Slowly

California Attorney General Files Nine Lawsuits In One Day As Trump Leaves Office

Sacramento County Is Expanding Vaccinations At Cal Expo, But Not Yet For The General Public

Social Media Posts Push False Claims About Kamala Harris And Planned Parenthood

We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter

Most Viewed

California Coronavirus Updates: California’s Ban On Indoor Worship Upheld By Appeals Court

High-Speed Rail In California Moves Along, But Slowly

California Attorney General Files Nine Lawsuits In One Day As Trump Leaves Office

Sacramento County Is Expanding Vaccinations At Cal Expo, But Not Yet For The General Public

Social Media Posts Push False Claims About Kamala Harris And Planned Parenthood

Back to Top

  • CapRadio

    7055 Folsom Boulevard
    Sacramento, CA 95826-2625

    • (916) 278-8900
    • Toll-free (877) 480-5900
    • Email Us
    • Submit a News Tip
  • Contact Us

  • About Us

    • Contact Us / Feedback
    • Coverage
    • Directions
    • Jobs & Internships
    • Mission / Vision / Core Values
    • Press
    • Staff Directory
    • Board of Directors
  • Listening Options

    • Mobile App
    • On Air Schedules
    • Smart Speakers
    • Playlist
    • Podcasts
    • RSS
  • Connect With Us

    •  Facebook
    •  Twitter
    •  Instagram
    •  YouTube
  • Donate

  • Listen

  • Newsletters

CapRadio stations are licensed to California State University, Sacramento. © 2021, Capital Public Radio. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Website Feedback FCC Public Files: KXJZ KKTO KUOP KQNC KXPR KXSR KXJS. For assistance accessing our public files, please call 916-278-8900 or email us.