NEW: First Electric Vehicle Charging Station to Open in Worcester

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Friday, March 30, 2012

GoLocalWorcester News Team

The Chevy Volt is just one of the electric vehicles that will be on display Monday.

The clean transportation movement will take a step forward in Worcester when several local officials open the city’s first electric charging station.

The event, scheduled for 3 p.m. Monday outside of Clark University’s Lasry Center for Biosciences, will feature addresses from Congressman Jim Mcgovern and other officials. The event will showcase the first electric vehicle (EV) charging station of its kind in Worcester history.

“Worcester and its higher education community are clearly positioned at the forefront of the clean transportation movement,” Congressman McGovern said. “I believe we must do everything in our power to pursue clean technology and transportation opportunities locally, for our fiscal and environmental health and so that we may continue to grow as a model for the rest of the nation.”

The Institute for Energy and Sustainability (IES) at Clark is hosting the event after receiving a Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources grant to install 10 charging stations in Central Mass. The parking-meter-like units will only cost $3.50 per hour of charge, but IES senior program advisor Christopher Noonan believes the value of these stations goes beyond money.

“The economic incentives are clear,” Noonan said. “Plus, with EV’s we can have the best of both worlds; individual mobility and pollution-free transit.”

The event will also showcase several EV’S, such as the Chevy Volt, Nissan Leaf and BMW Active-E. Similar stations are expected to open at Worcester Polytechnic Institute and Quinsigamond Community College soon.