Highways

HONOLULU– The Hawai‘i Department of Transportation (HDOT) announces the opening of its second electric vehicle charging station in the state funded by the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program. NEVI funding is authorized through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to support transition to zero-emission vehicles by increasing availability of convenient, reliable electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure.

The $3.5 million station opens at 8 a.m. today, Nov. 1, at Aloha Tower Marketplace on O‘ahu. The station includes four, 150-kilowatt, direct current chargers located along Aloha Tower Drive fronting Pier 7. HDOT is partnering with Hawai‘i Pacific University, the leaseholder of Aloha Tower, in siting the charging stations in the complex.

The four 150 kW DC fast chargers have Combined Charging System (CCS) and CHArge de MOve (CHAdeMO) connectors. North American Charging Standard connectors will be added in the future. At this time, EVs utilizing NACS will need an adapter.

The chargers are open 24-hours a day. Charging rates are $0.44 per kWh from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and $0.57 per kWh from 5 p.m. to 9 a.m. The rates are lower during the day as cost of electricity goes down when more solar power is generated.

To create a better experience for all users, HDOT will implement an idle fee that aims to increase NEVI charger availability. Once an EV reaches 100% state of charge, there will be an idle fee of $0.50/minute for every additional minute that a vehicle remains connected to the NEVI charger. There will be a five-minute grace period before idle fees start incurring.

Payment and charger availability can be checked through the EV Connect App at evconnect.com/. QR codes will be displayed at the chargers for customers starting a charging session with the mobile app. Payment by credit card is also accepted at the charger. The station display will show the pricing policy as well as the idle fee.

The charging rates at the Aloha Tower Complex are the same as the NEVI-funded charging station at the Kahului Park & Ride on Maui, which was the first NEVI-funded station to open in the state on Feb. 28.

Since then, there have been more than 6,800 charging sessions at the Kahului station providing more than 209,350 kWh, which translates to a reduction of nearly 137,000 kilograms of greenhouse gasses emitted into our atmosphere. The amount of greenhouse gasses reduced by these charging sessions is equivalent to the amount of carbon sequestered by 160 acres of U.S. Forest in one year.

“Hawai‘i is showing what true leadership looks like by implementing a strong electric vehicle infrastructure program to help Hawai‘i residents support sustainable transportation and reach our climate goals,” said Federal Highway Administration Acting Administrator Kristin White. “The Federal Highway Administration is proud to partner with the Aloha State and other states to make it more convenient for Americans to reliably and affordably charge their cars and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”

“Congratulations to Hawai‘i for opening their second EV charging station funded by the NEVI program,” said Gabe Klein, Executive Director of the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation. “As we have seen in Maui, we know this station in O‘ahu will be well appreciated by EV users, expanding confidence in our national charging network and resulting in cleaner air across Hawai‘i.”

“The NEVI program has been huge in accelerating our transition toward a sustainable transportation future,” said Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation Director Ed Sniffen. “Hawai‘i has long been a leader in EV adoption and HDOT will continue to push ahead on building the infrastructure needed to keep that momentum going. We’d like to thank our contractors, Sustainability Partners LLC, Hensel Phelps, Wasa Electrical Services Inc., Hawaiian Electric along with the U.S. Department of Transportation and our Hawai‘i Congressional Delegation for their partnership in delivering our NEVI program.”

“Hawai‘i Pacific University is proud to support HDOT’s efforts to reduce emissions and foster a cleaner, more sustainable Hawai‘i,” the university said. “By providing greater access to EV charging at our Aloha Tower Marketplace campus, we’re encouraging a shift towards sustainable practices that benefit our community and the environment.”

The NEVI program seeks to accelerate the adoption of EVs, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, help the U.S. lead global transportation electrification efforts and build out alternative fuel corridors through construction of a national network of electric vehicle chargers. See https://driveelectric.gov/

HDOT plans to build 11 NEVI charging stations statewide. The list of planned locations and status follows:

Island	Station Location	Status
Kauai	Port Allen	In design
Kauai	Princeville Library	In design
Oahu	Aloha Tower	Opened Nov. 1
Oahu	Mililani Mauka Park and Ride	In design
Maui	Kahului Park and Ride	Opened Feb. 28
Maui	Kapalua Airport	In design
Hawaii Island	Hilo Civic Center	In design
Hawaii Island	Waimea Civic Center	In design
Hawaii Island	West Hawaii Civic Center	In design
Hawaii Island	Cooper Center Volcano	In design
Hawaii Island	Ocean View Hawaii County Park and Ride lot	Seeking input on potential sites at https://hidot.hawaii.gov/highways/hawaii-nevi-state-plan/

For images, see:

https://hidot.hawaii.gov/administration/files/2024/11/Oahu-Nevi-1–scaled.jpeg

https://hidot.hawaii.gov/administration/files/2024/11/Oahu-Nevi-2-scaled.jpeg

 

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