Google, Inc. is partnering up with the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory and other stakeholders to use Google Maps as the primary platform for coordinating a database that provides up-to-date information on the whereabouts of electric vehicle charging stations nationwide.
The project is being conducted through DOE’s Alternative Fuel and Advanced Vehicles Data Center, which already features an online alternative fuels location finder that includes EV charging stations.
The new partnership is coordinated with a $5 million funding program from DOE, which will pair up local governments with private companies to speed up the development of an EV charging station infrastructure.
On the government side, that involves updating and streamlining permitting procedures for charging stations, as well as developing a framework of incentives to encourage the use of EV’s by consumers, businesses, and organizations. On the business side, that means the arrival of new opportunities for companies that design and construct charging stations to expand more rapidly and create new green jobs.
