Business View Magazine | July 2020

12 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE JULY 2020 at a time when we believe major investment in electric vehicle charging infrastructure will help significantly with economic recovery from COVID-19 in our states.” Other sponsors of the study are Los Angeles Department of Water & Power, Northern California Power Agency, Pacific Gas and Electric Company, Pacific Power, Portland General Electric, Puget Sound Energy, Sacramento Municipal Utility District, San Diego Gas & Electric, Seattle City Light and Southern California Public Power Authority. HDR completed the study. The study’s final report proposes a phased approach for electrifying the I-5 corridor. The first phase would involve installing 27 charging sites along I-5 at 50-mile intervals for medium-duty electric vehicles, such as delivery vans, by 2025. Then, later, 14 of the 27 charging sites would be expanded to also accommodate charging for electric big rigs by 2030, when it is estimated that 8% of all trucks on the road in California could be electric. Of the 27 proposed sites, 16 are in California, five are in Oregon and six are in Washington. An additional 41 sites on other highways that connect to I-5 are being proposed for electrification. Those highways include Interstates 8, 10, 80, 210 and 710 and state routes 60 and 99 in California; I-84 in Oregon and I-90 in Washington. “We are proud to work closely with our customers to help drive the electrification of commercial freight and fleet vehicles,” said Will Einstein, PSE’s director of New Product Development. “By supplying our customers with clean electricity as a transportation fuel, we can support our customers’ desire for lower-carbon electricity and transportation fuel options, reduce air emissions and improve community health outcomes while helping Washington state accelerate its efforts to meet stronger environmental goals.” This study comes at a time when we believe major investment in electric vehicle charging infrastructure will help significantly with economic recovery from COVID-19 in our states