California has taken a significant step towards a greener future with the approval of a $1.4 billion investment plan to boost emissions-free transportation. The plan includes the installation of nearly 17,000 new electric vehicle charging stations and hydrogen refueling infrastructure. This initiative is part of California’s $48 billion climate budget, which allocates over $10 billion for zero-emission vehicles and infrastructure. The investment aims to benefit low-income and disadvantaged communities.
The funding will be distributed over the next four years through competitive grants, with at least half of the investment going towards “priority populations.” This includes communities facing multiple sources of pollution and those lacking resources for low-carbon solutions. The state expects the number of public and shared private chargers to increase from 152,000 to 250,000 in the next few years. Additionally, there are already around half a million private home chargers installed in the state.
