SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Bay Area elected and business leaders announced today the launch of a CEO-level “EV Strategic Council” – along with $5 million+ in new funding – to ensure that the Bay Area becomes the “EV Capital of the U.S.” Led by the region’s big city Mayors, regional officials and clean tech industry executives, the Bay Area EV Strategic Council aims to develop the infrastructure needed for an influx of new electric vehicles (EVs) now available and soon to arrive from GM, Nissan, Tesla, Toyota, Mitsubishi, Ford, BMW and others.
Marin County Supervisor Steve Kinsey, Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates, and Oakland Mayor Jean Quan were among the leaders convened at San Francisco City Hall to advance EV initiatives and announce a package of grants and initiatives for the region, including:
- $1.5 million from the California Energy Commission – supplemented by $2.5 million in local public and private funds – to install over 300 new public EV chargers, including 19 “Fast Chargers” capable of recharging a Nissan Leaf in 20 minutes.
- $700,000 from the U.S. Department of Energy, the California Energy Commission and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) to complete regional EV Strategic Plans encompassing 12 counties in the San Francisco Bay and Monterey Bay regions.
- Publication of Ready, Set, Charge, California! A Guide to EV-Ready Communities through a $625,000 grant administered by the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG), the EV Communities Alliance, and the Bay Area Climate Collaborative to support Bay Area and South Coast cities in becoming “EV-ready.”
- $546,097 RFG settlement funding grant for an EV car sharing pilot program which City CarShare administered by the Bay Area Air Quality Management District covering the purchase of 10 new plug-in Toyota Prius vehicles and an outreach campaign to the members of City CarShare on the benefits of EV use.
In announcing the awards, Steve Kinsey, Marin County Supervisor and Co-Chair of the EV Strategic Council, said: “One of the smartest things we can do as a community is to ‘Go EV.’ By reaching our target of 100,000 EVs in the Bay Area by 2015, drivers will save over $200 million a year that can be re-invested in local jobs, and vehicle emissions will be reduced by nearly 80% compared to conventional cars. Moreover, as we invest in more renewable energy, EVs will get even cleaner and our energy independence will be strengthened. EVs are a triple win – for the economy, the environment, and our national security.”
Silicon Valley Leadership Group CEO Carl Guardino, another founding member of the EV Strategic Council, said: “Who would have thought even five years ago that the Bay Area would emerge as a center for electric vehicle manufacturing? Yet here we are with Tesla and Toyota in a joint venture, two new EV factories coming on line (Tesla in Fremont and Coda in Benicia), and GM, BMW and Daimler all working on EVs and other R&D projects here in Silicon Valley. By working together, government and industry can extend this leadership position by making sure all our cities and counties have the EV charging infrastructure and EV-friendly policies we need.”
The executive officers of the Bay Area’s three largest regional agencies also issued a joint statement marking the establishment of the EV Strategic Council and a collaborative EV planning process for the region. According to Ezra Rapport of the Association of Bay Area Governments, Jack Broadbent of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, and Steve Heminger of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, “This is the beginning of a new era of strategic collaboration to build a low-carbon economy in the Bay Area. With nearly half of our greenhouse gas emissions coming from the transportation sector – and our regional economy extremely vulnerable to oil price hikes and supply disruptions – making sure this region leads on EV is absolutely essential.”
About the Bay Area EV Strategic Council
The Bay Area EV Strategic Council is the region’s executive forum to establish the Bay Area as an “EV Capital” region, as measured by the mass adoption of EVs. To advance this mission, the Council strategically aligns policies, programs and resources to accelerate EV penetration, with emphasis on 2012-2013 as a “tipping point” in the transition to electrified transportation. Members of the EV Strategic Council include Marin Supervisor Steve Kinsey (co-chair), San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee, San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed, Oakland Mayor Jean Quan, Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates, the executive directors of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, Bay Area Air Quality Management District, Association of Bay Area Governments, and senior executives from Tesla, PG&E, Coulomb Technologies, Silicon Valley Leadership Group, the California Energy Commission, Itron, ECOtality, City CarShare, Plug-in America, the Clean Cities Coalitions of the Bay Area and the Monterey Bay EV Alliance. The Council is facilitated by the Bay Area Climate Collaborative and the EV Communities Alliance.