Picente releases electric vehicle station plan for Oneida, Herkimer counties

Utica, N.Y. — Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente Jr. has announced an updated Electric Vehicle Charging Station Community Plan encompassing Oneida and Herkimer counties.

“We all saw at the recent opening of Wolfspeed in Marcy that electric vehicles are an important part of the future of transportation nationally and a key piece of our economy in this county and region,” Picente said in a news release. “We are committed to seeing all aspects of this industry grow and that includes preparing Oneida County to be a leader in upstate New York electric vehicle infrastructure.”

The Electric Vehicle (EV) Plan is designed to recommend strategies for supporting current and future EV drivers traveling within the region and between regions across the state. The range of EVS continues to improve each year and is quickly approaching that of a conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle that uses petroleum fuel.

However, there remains a critical need for additional charging stations to facilitate longer distance travel, support inter-county commutes and provide access to charging opportunities for more moderate-income households and owners of earlier generations of EVS.

The plan identifies gaps where public infrastructure does not support EV drivers, and it recommends charging station installations at key locations to establish a comprehensive charging network. It also identifies various socioeconomic, geographical and educational resource barriers that impinge the switch from an ICE vehicle to an EV.

Oneida County will also create an EV dashboard that will show the public exactly where charging stations are located; update in real-time the progress of additional charger installations, and offer other metrics to track the progress of this infrastructure.

Picente has committed to including 67,and up to 300 total, EV charging stations in the Mohawk Valley Health System Wynn Hospital parking garage in downtown Utica.

“The plan outlines a fiveplus year implementation timeline to address this growing need,” Oneida County Commissioner of Planning James Genovese said. “There are 14 concrete steps spread over the timeframe that range from site-level planning, to installation of stations, to improving signage and visibility around locations, and steps that will allow for continued reassessment and community involvement.”

The multi-year implementation timeline includes:

Within two years:

∙ Identify relevant stakeholders.

∙ Establish an EV charging station ownership/continuity model.

∙ Develop an approved listing of EV charging station sites based

on stakeholder discussions.

∙ Commence site-level planning.

∙ Select a charging station equipment provider.

∙ Determine funding needs, timelines and permit requirements.

∙ Identify and apply for federal and state funding for EV infrastructure.

∙ Install EV charging stations for approved sites.

∙ Develop platform for residents and non-residents to easily locate EV charging stations (the Oneida County EV Charging Station Dashboard).

Two-five years:

∙ Update approved listing of EV charging station sites.

∙ Install EV charging stations for approved sites.

∙ Install signage and visibility improvements related to stations.

Five years and beyond:

∙ Reassess areas of greatest need for additional EV charging stations.

∙ Identify advancements in EV charging technology to replace outdated units. The Electric Vehicle Charging Station Plan can be viewed at ocgov. net/oneida/sites/default/files/planning/ev_chargingstationplan_0.pdf.