Penn State gets $3.3M state grant to add electric vehicles, infrastructure to campus
Thanks to a state grant, Penn State is about to welcome more electric vehicles and infrastructure to campus.
The university was recently awarded a $3.3 million grant from the state Department of Environmental Protection to replace five diesel-powered trucks between 19,501 and 33,000 pounds with battery electric vehicles, in addition to the installation of four DC fast EV chargers and one Level 2 EV charging plug. The announcement was made jointly Wednesday by state Reps. Scott Conklin, D-Rush Township, and Paul Takac, D-College Township.
According to the state representatives, the chargers will appear at three locations across Penn State. The university did not immediately answer several questions the CDT posed — such as the chargers’ locations, whether the public will have access and what percentage of the university’s fleet is now electric — but a spokesperson said more information should be released later this week.
“We are excited that the Commonwealth is supporting our efforts to reduce the emissions of our fleet vehicles and our work on integrating the latest technology into University operations,” Lara B. Fowler, Chief Sustainability Officer at Penn State and director of Penn State Sustainability, said in a written statement. “Transportation is a critical piece of the puzzle in decreasing emissions. This funding enables us to take an important step toward electrifying our vehicles and also helps Penn State continue to move toward its sustainability goals.”
Conklin and Takac’s respective offices released a joint news release Wednesday about the grant, which comes from the state DEP’s Medium and Heavy-Duty Zero Emission Vehicle Fleet Pilot Grant Program.
They both praised the grant, with the hope that building up EV infrastructure at the state’s largest university will serve as an important step forward — for both the university and, potentially, rural Pennsylvania.
“I am excited to announce this multi-million grant award to help support Penn State’s efforts to transition to electric vehicles in order to reduce their impact on the environment, while also saving money,” Takac said in a written statement. “Sustainability and environmental responsibility are critical to the future of our Commonwealth and our world. As Pennsylvania’s land grant institution, Penn State’s commitment and leadership on this issue are critically important.”
Added Conklin: “More so, by transitioning Penn State’s fleet to EVs, we help decrease emissions in Centre County, making Pennsylvania’s fleets closer to achieving zero emissions.”
This pilot grant program is designed to build off the success of the Driving PA Forward Initiative, which awarded more than $70 million to about 1,100 emissions reduction projects throughout the Commonwealth.
