Norwich EV has installed some of the first DC Fast Charging stations in the nation funded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program
BRADFORD, VT. — The town of Bradford Vermont now boasts some of the fastest EV charging stations in the state and perhaps the region. The community has several EV charging options available to the public located off Main Street, in the parking lot behind Denny Park. Norwich EV has recently completed a new bank of four DC Fast Chargers (DCFC, also known as Level 3), and previously in 2023 Norwich EV completed the installation of three additional electric vehicle chargers at the same site.
On April 23, Vermont’s Congressional Delegation with delegates from the Federal Highway Administration, the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation, the Vermont Agency of Transportation, the Agency of Commerce and Community Development, and the Agency of Natural Resource joined the local Bradford community to celebrate the newly operational DCFC stations.
Funding for all of these chargers has come from a variety of sources. The first phase consisted of two DCFC Level 3 chargers and one Level 2 charger was funded in part by a grant from the Vermont Agency of Commerce and Community Development, and included project financing from Vermont State Employees Credit Union.
The second phase was funded with a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program and administered by the Vermont Agency of Transportation(VTrans). The DCFC stations in Bradford are the 6th such Federally Funded stations in the nation.
“With the additional funding from the NEVI grant administered through VTrans, Bradford is now a major charging hub with six DCFC charging stations. The chargers are conveniently located off I-91 and within walking distance of downtown Bradford’s shops and restaurants,” explains Berrett Walter, Clean Technologies Project Manager for Norwich EV. “The bank of chargers will bring EV drivers peace of mind that they can access the quickest charging options allowing them to charge to about 80% in under an hour so they can travel across the state.”
Federal and State funding is crucial to building out EV charging infrastructure in rural areas across the country. According to the US Department of Transportation, most of the country’s travelways run through rural areas. Bradford is a prime location off Interstate Route 91 and Route 5 that will serve drivers heading north and south along those corridors, as well as the surrounding communities.
The Bradford EV charging station projects received strong support from the Bradford Climate and Energy Commission, Town Selectboard and Planning Commission. The Town is planning their own ribbon cutting and celebration to be held on Saturday May 4th. The local ribbon-cutting event will include a live band, food & drinks, and e-bikes to try. Several models of electric vehicles will also be available for people to view and explore, courtesy of local EV owners and dealerships.
“These new chargers mean that people that live, work and visit Bradford know for certain that they can recharge their vehicles. We are proud to offer a range of charging options for drivers. One of the EV chargers is a lower-voltage device, meant for people who are parking their car to go to work,” said Bradford Climate and Energy Commission member Nancy Jones. “Another two are mid-level chargers for faster options, and now we have DC fast chargers for people that need to get on the road quickly.”
Level 2 chargers can charge most BEVs (battery electric vehicles) to 80 percent from empty in 4-10 hours and a PHEV (plug-in hybrid electric vehicles) in 1-2 hours, while DCFC equipment can charge a BEV to 80 percent in 20 minutes to 1 hour.*
Troy McBride, Chief Technology Officer for Norwich EV commented that, “Electrifying Vermont’s transportation sector is imperative to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels and meet the State’s climate and emissions targets. The installation of public high speed charging in Vermont downtowns can both increase electric vehicle adoption and visitor foot traffic (during charging) in vibrant downtowns like Bradford.”
The Norwich EV team worked with many partners to design and install the charging stations including charger supplier ABB E-mobility. ABB E-mobility manufactures reliable hardware that meets the requirements required under the NEVI program, while Red-E Charging provides excellent software and customer support. The expanded charging site features four Build America, Buy America compliant ABB E-mobility 180 kilowatt (kW) fast chargers, each ready to recharge a typical electric vehicle in under 20 minutes. Built in South Carolina and initially installed with standard Combined Charging System (CCS)1 connectors, the chargers are upgradeable to accommodate North American Charging Standard (NACS) connector cables in order to support all types of current and future electric vehicle makes and models. Green Mountain Power and E&S Electric Company were valuable installation partners. NorwichEV will own and operate the Level 2 & 3 chargers installed through these grant funded programs.
Additional news coverage and press releases from our partners in the project: