West Coast interstate will be first to accommodate electric cars

Connects Vancouver - San Diego

Steve Hawley, Feb 26, 10.

Interstate 5, which connects Vancouver all the way down to the border between California and Mexico, will soon be fully equipped with charging stations for electric vehicles, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT). The project is the result of a partnership between British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and California.

WSDOT plans to build electric charging stations at rest stops, park and ride lots, and other state-owned property, as well as at shopping malls and other urban centers.

Almost one-third of US greenhouse gas emissions are caused by transportation, and many groups, including WSDOT, have touted electric vehicles as a way to significantly reduce those emissions. However, other studies have shown that as the US relies on fossil fuels for its generating plants, electric cars are no better than gasoline-powered cars. Streetsblog says, “[H]ybrids and electric vehicles are still likely to consume serious amounts of coal—at least until the nation adopts an effective renewable electricity standard.

Switching from gasoline-powered vehicles to electric vehicles will also do little to reduce congestion. According to US Department of Transportation (DOT) projections, 95 percent of the corridor - or 1,283 of its 1,350 miles - will be heavily congested by 2035 without major intervention. Transportation agencies in the area have made some investments in alternative transportation, such as the Portland streetcar system, the light rail line that opened recently in Seattle and the high-speed rail line that will connect San Diego, to San Francisco and Sacramento.

DOT has named I-5 as one of six “corridors of the future,” designed to develop innovative approaches to reducing congestion and improving freight travel. Interstate 10, which runs through Houston, was also selected for the program, as was Interstate 69, which is proposed to run from Texas to the Michigan/Canada border.