APS plan would raise number of electric car charging stations
Jan 28, 2018, 7:03 PM
FILE - In this Thursday, Sept. 17, 2015 file photo, Darshan Brahmbhatt, plugs a charger into his electric vehicle at the Sacramento Municipal Utility District charging station in Sacramento, Calif. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File)
(AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File)
PHOENIX — An Arizona utility has presented a proposal that would make it easier for residents in multi-family housing units to charge electric cars.
According to Kent Walter, a spokesman with the Arizona Public Service, the company presented the proposal to the Arizona Corporation Commission last year and is now awaiting its decision.
The proposal, according to Walter, includes a plan to increase the number of electric vehicle charging stations at apartment complexes and other multi-family housing facilities.
“Multi-family homes don’t always have the ability to charge,” he said. “This would allow them to use electric vehicles.”
It would also let APS pre-wire new homes for those charging stations, which Walter said is a much cheaper option than wiring stations into already-existing homes.
APS claimed that residents would be able to charge their electric cars for the equivalent of 30 to 90-cents per gallon.
“It’s a tremendous opportunity for customers,” Walter said.
The utility proposed the plan in response to a growing trend of electric vehicles. Walter said currently, electric vehicles make up 1 percent of all car sales, but that number is expected to “grow dramatically.”
If this sounds exciting, you might have to wait a while until it is implemented: There is no word when the corporation commission might rule on the program.
KTAR News’ Bob McClay and Kathy Cline contributed to this report.
