President Joe Biden has pledged to support the uptake of electric vehicles by announcing almost £500million in funding to install more chargers.
The White House has pledged $623million (£488million) in funding to boost the number of electric vehicle charging points.
It is believed that the boost in funding will add around 7,500 chargers across the United States.
There are more than 170,000 chargers in the US with many experts praising Joe Biden for putting force behind the rollout of EV infrastructure.
Joe Biden has backed the rise of electric cars
REUTERS/GETTY
The Government has outlined plans to build a nationwide electric car charging network that will suit all EV drivers across the nation.
This will set new national standards for EV charging to ensure all drivers can use the network no matter what vehicle they drive or which state they are in.
One of the largest pledges includes expanding the “alternative fuel corridors” to a staggering 79,000 miles of highways in all 50 states.
The Government has so far pledged more than $2.2billion (£2.8billion) in funding for states to build an effective nationwide EV charging network.
Pete Buttigieg, the US Secretary of Transportation, said: “We are building the charging network to win the EV race.
“The electric vehicle revolution isn’t coming, it is here. I take very personally the importance of the fact that America led the world in the automotive revolution.
“Now we are in the midst of a second automotive revolution, it’s critical America do so once more.”
As part of the Department of Transportation’s Strategic Plan 2022-2026, the US Government aimed to deploy the Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure through the Infrastructure, Investment and Jobs Act.
This would involve installing more chargers to meet President Biden’s goal of 500,000 electric vehicle chargers by the end of the decade.
Ali Zaidi, a climate advisor to President Biden, said the United States was on course to “meet and exceed” the charger goal.
He continued, saying: “The US is taking the lead globally on electric vehicles.
“We will continue to see this buildout over the coming years and decades until we’ve achieved a fully net zero transportation sector.”
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President Biden with an electric Chevrolet Silverado EV pickup truck
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Electric cars account for nine per cent of all vehicle sales in the US with the industry seeing one million EV sales for the first time ever in 2023.
