US to Build Highway Electric Vehicle Charging Network
2022-09-29
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1The U.S. Department of Transportation recently approved plans for all 50 American states to build charging stations for electric vehicles, or EVs, along the nation's highways.
2The network of charging stations is part of the government's efforts to help more Americans move to zero-emission vehicles.
3The approval means that $5 billion in federal money will be available over five years to build the stations.
4They will be placed about every 80 kilometers along the highways.
5The goal is to have about 500,000 charging stations across the nation.
6And construction of the stations could begin by spring of 2023.
7Under the Department of Transportation rules, states must first build fast-charging stations that could cost between $40,000 to $100,000.
8A vehicle can fully charge at these stations in about one hour.
9Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said, "America led the original automotive revolution in the last century,"
10and he said the plan will help make sure people in every part of the country will be able to use electric vehicles.
11President Biden has set a goal that 50 percent of new U.S. car sales be electric by 2030.
12The charging network is a big step to help Americans worry less about finding a place to charge their electric vehicles.
13But it could be difficult for some states to deal with limited electricity grid capacity and shortages of materials to build the stations.
14States like Texas, California and Florida say their electricity grid should be able to handle an increase of a million or more EVs.
15Other states like New Jersey, Vermont and Mississippi are not so sure.
16They also expressed concerns about whether they could set up charging stations that meet the American-made rules.
17"It may delay implementation by several years," New Jersey officials wrote.
18Currently, many EV owners charge their vehicles at home, about 80 percent of the time, usually at single-family houses.
19But that is likely to change with the new charging network.
20The new law also gives an extra $2.5 billion to rural areas and poorer communities to help build charging stations in those places.
21I'm Andrew Smith.
1The U.S. Department of Transportation recently approved plans for all 50 American states to build charging stations for electric vehicles, or EVs, along the nation's highways. 2The network of charging stations is part of the government's efforts to help more Americans move to zero-emission vehicles. 3The approval means that $5 billion in federal money will be available over five years to build the stations. They will be placed about every 80 kilometers along the highways. The goal is to have about 500,000 charging stations across the nation. And construction of the stations could begin by spring of 2023. 4Under the Department of Transportation rules, states must first build fast-charging stations that could cost between $40,000 to $100,000. A vehicle can fully charge at these stations in about one hour. 5Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said, "America led the original automotive revolution in the last century," and he said the plan will help make sure people in every part of the country will be able to use electric vehicles. 6President Biden has set a goal that 50 percent of new U.S. car sales be electric by 2030. The charging network is a big step to help Americans worry less about finding a place to charge their electric vehicles. But it could be difficult for some states to deal with limited electricity grid capacity and shortages of materials to build the stations. 7States like Texas, California and Florida say their electricity grid should be able to handle an increase of a million or more EVs. 8Other states like New Jersey, Vermont and Mississippi are not so sure. They also expressed concerns about whether they could set up charging stations that meet the American-made rules. 9"It may delay implementation by several years," New Jersey officials wrote. 10Currently, many EV owners charge their vehicles at home, about 80 percent of the time, usually at single-family houses. But that is likely to change with the new charging network. The new law also gives an extra $2.5 billion to rural areas and poorer communities to help build charging stations in those places. 11I'm Andrew Smith. 12Hope Yen wrote this story for the Associated Press. Andrew Smith adapted it for VOA Learning English. 13______________________________________________________________________ 14Words in This Story 15emission -n. that which is produced or sent out (such as energy or gas) from a source 16construction -n. the act of building something, such as a house, road, bridge, and the like 17revolution -n. an important change in an area of human activity 18grid -n. a network, usually to distribute electricity over an area 19capacity -n. the amount of what can be produced or delivered 20implementation -n. the act of using or completing a method or project 21______________________________________________________________________ 22We want to hear from you. 23We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 24Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.