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By Clark Curtis, For the Washington Daily News

The much-awaited public EV charging stations in Washington have all been installed. Washington City manager, Jonathan Russell said the final electrical connections, software updates, and inspections are underway. “The majority of the infrastructure is now in place,” said Russell. “Once the final work is completed, they should all be ready to go live for public use in about two weeks. We are very excited!”

Each pedestal will have two Level II chargers, and will be capable of charging at a rate of about 60 miles of travel per hour. “The actual cost will be about 15 cents per Kilowatt hour or roughly the equivalent of the rate that we charge our residential customers,” said Russell. “People will be able to pay directly at the charging stations with either debit or credit cards. The city will then get a monthly payout.”

Russell said the city has been receiving enquiries about the availability of charging stations, particularly through its tourist and development division. “People traveling from the Tidewater region, northern Virginia, or anything west of Raleigh, knew they had enough charge to get here, but wanted to make sure there were places they could charge to get back home,” said Russell. “So from a tourism standpoint this is very important, but also for our local residents, as well. We will continue to monitor the usage moving forward and will then make a determination if more are needed.”

The three charging stations are located at the new parking lot behind the police station, the parking lot at the corner of Bonner and East Main, and at the Aquatic center. Those with Tesla vehicles will need a special adapter, which Tesla provides to its car owners. Russell said the purchase and installation of the charging stations was made possible by a state grant initiative to add EV charging stations throughout North Carolina.