Skip to main content

Oregon State Flag An official website of the State of Oregon »

Electric Vehicle Charger Reliability and Accessibility Accelerator Program in Oregon

Latest updates - May 2025 
  • We held an information webinar for potential applicants on May 22, 2025. 
  • Grant agreements are underway with Round 1 awardees. 

How to apply for EVC-RAA funding (May 2025) 

Applications for EVC-RAA Round 1 funding closed on November 22, 2024. We’re planning a modified, second grant funding opportunity for the program to launch in Q3 of 2025. 

Details about EVC-RAA Projects

In December 2024, we selected 3 entities as finalists for EVC-RAA. Below is a breakdown of the proposed stations for each awardee.

EVCS

  1. 1499 NE 15th St, Lincoln City: Eight DC fast charging ports (four funded by the grant program) and Battery Energy Storage.
  2. 1310 Locust St., Arlington: Eight DC fast charging ports (four funded by the grant program) and Battery Energy Storage.

OpConnect, Inc.

  1. 1100 Airport Road, Salem: Four DC fast charging ports.
  2. 3640 Northeast Martin Luther King Junior Blvd., Portland: Four Level 2 charging ports.

Electrify America

  1. 400 4th St, Lake Oswego: Four DC fast charging ports.
  2. 3805 SE Hawthorne Blvd, Portland: Four DC fast charging ports.

Note: As of December 2024, the selected applicants are “intent to award" finalists, meaning ODOT still needs to negotiate and sign grant agreements with each company. We expect that process to wrap up in early 2025.

Program overview

ODOT was originally awarded $10 million in funding in 2024 through the federal Electric Vehicle Charger Reliability and Accessibility Accelerator program  for public EV charging station repairs and upgrades

The grant will repair and upgrade EV chargers at public EV charging stations throughout the state. The funding can also be used to install more Level 2 or DC fast charging ports at project sites.

The ODOT Climate Office will oversee the grant fund distribution in Oregon. Private companies that operate the EV charging stations will be responsible for the charger repairs and station upgrades. They’re also required to contribute at least 20% matching funds to be eligible for the program.

In Round 1, ODOT awarded approximately $3.2 million in funding. For Round 2, ODOT anticipates awarding up to $5.8 million and making several changes that would broaden both the eligible applicant pool and the pool of eligible charging stations that could qualify for EVC-RAA funding.   

The EVC-RAA program is part of the $5 billion investment in public EV charging nationwide from the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. ODOT is one of 14 state DOTs to receive funding. 

Information for potential applicants

Potentially eligible applicants include:

    1. Charging equipment and/or charging network providers for charging stations
    2. EV service providers that own and operate charging stations
    3. Electric utility service providers
    4. Public entities with eligible charging stations located on the public entity's property

Funding priorities

ODOT plans to prioritize:

  1. Charging stations from a list created by the Federal Highway Administration in 2023 (Attachment 7– “List of Eligible Charging Stations” from Round 1), see section below for details.
  2. DC fast charging stations or Level 2 charging stations being upgraded to DC fast charging stations located on specific roads known as EV Alternative Fuel Corridors.
  3. Charging stations in “Preferred Corridor Locations,” see section below for details
  4. Charging stations in Priority Communities, defined as rural and disadvantaged communities.    

EV Alternative Fuel Corridors in Oregon
  • Interstates 5, 84, 205, 405, and 82.  
  • US Highways 97, 101, 20, 26, 95, and OR Highway 42

Charging station eligibility details and Preferred Corridor Locations

For Round 2, we expanded our station eligibility requirements for the program and added several Preferred Corridor Locations throughout the state. 

Eligible charging stations group: Stations identified by the Federal Highway Administration

In October 2023, the Federal Highway Administration identified 135 public EV charging stations in Oregon that have at least one broken EV charging port — either Level 2 or DC fast chargers — that were eligible for repairs or upgrades using program funds.

These charging stations are still eligible for program funding in our Round 2 funding opportunity, which will start in Q3 2025. We will prioritize funding for these stations in Round 2. Their locations are represented by the purple pins in the map below.

New, expanded eligible charging stations group: DCFC charging stations (or Level 2 stations that will be upgraded to DCFC) located on an EV Alternative Fuel Corridor
Our new, expanded eligibility criteria focuses on DC fast charging stations that are located on an EV Alternative Fuel corridor and no closer than 30 miles* from existing or planned charging stations that use federal funding from either the NEVI, EVC-RAA, or CFI programs. 

On the map, the green pins represent planned charging stations funded by one of those three programs.
For example, the green pin near Cottage Grove indicates a NEVI-funded charging station. Let’s say there is a broken or non-CFR 680-compliant DC fast charging station 31 miles away from the Cottage Grove station’s location. That broken charging station would be eligible under the new, expanded criteria. 

*Select Preferred Corridor Locations are slightly less than 30 miles from a “NEVI-compliant" charging station. The minimum distancing requirements do not apply to charging stations proposed in these locations. 

Preferred Corridor Locations

The orange shapes on the map indicate our new Preferred Corridor Locations. We will prioritize applications that propose repairs or upgrades to DC fast charging stations in those areas. (That is, those applications will receive more points based on our competitive grant scoring criteria.)

Note: Funded stations must meet additional federal requirements and have agreements in place with the station owners and site hosts.                                                                          

Program details

Requirements for repairing or upgrading charging stations

Charging stations must meet all requirements outlined in Title 23 Federal Code of Regulations 680.  High-level requirements include: 

  • At least 4 charging ports per station. 
  • 97% average uptime (i.e. working.) 
  • Standardized payment methods. 
  • Real-time information on location, pricing, and availability. 
  • Accessible to people of all abilities.  
  • Benefits disadvantaged communities following federal Justice40 rules. 

Past Updates

  • December 2024: We selected the “intent to award" finalists for the Electric Vehicle Charger Reliability and Accessibility Accelerator (EVC-RAA) program: EVCS, OpConnect, Inc., and Electrify America.
  • November 2024: We updated the  EVC RAA Frequently Asked Questions on November 4, 2024. Applications for EVC RAA funding closed on November 22nd, 2024. 
  • October 2024: We released the Notice of Funding Opportunity for the EVC RAA program on October 8, 2024. We held an information webinar for eligible applicants on October 11, 2024. The recording of the presentation is available in the "Archived Resources" section below.
  • July 2024: We held an information webinar for EV charging companies on July 24, 2024. The archived recording of the presentation is available in the "Archived Resources" section below.


Archived application instructions

Archived Information for Eligible Applicants

Why we are investing in EV charger repairs and station upgrades

A reliable public charging experience is critical to speed EV adoption rates and foster confidence among EV drivers throughout Oregon. If more people can imagine an EV fitting into their daily lives, then they may consider an EV for their next vehicle purchase. 

Helping spur the transition to EVs is one of the ways we’re working with other state agencies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transportation. Our data says that by 2050, we’ll reduce emissions by about 60%. Learn how we’ll get there on our transportation emissions webpage