Purdue and INDOT request public feedback on electric vehicles

Indianapolis, Indiana – The Indiana Department of Transportation and Purdue University academics are interested in hearing what the public thinks about electric cars and how they will be fueled in the future.

As the state develops a long-term strategy for the placement of public EV chargers and the fee to use them, a new poll attempts to measure popular attitudes.

The installation of level three direct-current chargers will be funded by the state out of the federal government’s 2021 Infrastructure Law, which has been set aside about $100 million. These high-speed charging stations can recharge the majority of the regularly available electric vehicles to almost full capacity in less than 30 minutes.

Instead, level one and level two chargers require hours.

There are already multiple sections of busy roadways in Indiana that lack adequate EV charging stations. For instance, there is just one set of Level 3 chargers located along Interstate 65 between Indianapolis and Chicago.

They are at a Walmart in Lafayette, where there are frequent queues and protracted wait times due to high demand.

The new poll may assist assess acceptance rates and growth models, two things the state has stated it will consider when deciding on future locations. According to INDOT, the capacity of the power system to support new stations will also be considered. By law, it must also ensure that the new stations meet the needs of both urban and rural areas.

Over the past few years, EV sales have skyrocketed. According to the International Energy Agency, EV sales in the United States increased by 55% in 2022, and they are expected to continue growing rapidly in the years to come. However, recent sales numbers have plateaued, highlighting the ambiguity surrounding the future of EVs.

The current study fills that gap.

The subjects covered include the number of miles driven in a typical week to different locations, when and under what conditions one would contemplate purchasing an EV, and which of the three charging options one would select when driving further. Additionally, it makes reference to an alternative charging mechanism that has not yet been implemented: a highway equipped with “Power Transfer Technology” that charges vehicles as they pass over it. Building a testing ground for the technology is being done by Purdue and a number of other partners.