Electric vehicle charging station goes live at Phoenix Zoo
Mar 9, 2022, 8:00 PM
(Photos: From left, Wikimedia; Salt River Project)
PHOENIX – A charging station for electric vehicles is now powered up and ready to go at the Phoenix Zoo.
Mayor Kate Gallego and representatives from the zoo and Salt River Project on Tuesday unveiled the station – 20 pay-to-charge parking spots near the front of the animal facility near Van Buren and 52nd streets.
Charges will start out free but eventually move to hourly prices.
Revenue from the charging station will help offset the cost of the research and help maintain the charging equipment, the public utility said in a press release.
Solar panels lining the top of the station are designed to send renewable energy back to the SRP power system.
“This exciting collaboration between the Phoenix Zoo and SRP is an example of the creative installation of charging infrastructure we need to make EV ownership easy and accessible,” Gallego said.
SRP has set a goal of reducing its carbon footprint 65% by 2035.
To that end, the company previously announced renewable-energy projects of a solar-powered battery storage system and a solar plant to be built on the Navajo Nation next year.