Longmont Takes Part in National Drive Electric Week

Next week communities around the country will be celebrating electric vehicles as part of National Drive Electric Vehicle Week. Shoshana Lew, Director of the Colorado Department of Transportation says EV usage is on the rise in the state due to recent legislation.

“There are a whole whole host of important policies taking off that really helped with the uptake of electrification. You know, on the legislative front there was a range of important legislation was passed last year. You know, importantly extending the incentives to consumers for purchase of electric vehicles, really helping on the side of increasing charging infrastructure. Making it such that the charging spots are protected for users of electric vehicles and others just to name a few. We also recently adopted a zero emission vehicle rule. We, the Air Quality and Control Commission, upon the recommendation of agencies, adopted this rule. And what this does is it really will help to get more models available to consumers faster. By virtue of participating in a program that many other states partake in, it provides an incentive to manufacturers to bring the same kind of
models to Colorado that exist in other States. And that means that consumers in Colorado will have more choice.”

Lew says that offering more charging stations around the state and not just in urban areas will increase EV usage, as will increased outreach and consumer education.

“So increasing that network where charging is available is a place where we’ll see more progress over the years to come. And you know, frankly, education is an issue. You know, it’s a little bit different than driving a traditional internal combustion engine. So helping consumers become comfortable with what it means to use an electric vehicle and to just kind of help on the consumer education side is another big piece of this. As they become more familiar to more people, I think we will see more people continuing to make that choice.”

Sustainable Resilient Longmont is organizing Longmont’s first Electric Vehicle Fair on Sunday, September 15, 2019 from 11 am – 3 pm, in the Boulder County Fairgrounds (North Parking Lot; same location as Saturday Farmers Markets,) as part of National Drive Electric Week. Four local auto dealerships including Valley Nissan, King GM, Gebhardt BMW and Green-Eyed Motors, will be displaying their latest EV models and offering test drives. Individual EV owners will have their vehicles on display, and be on hand to answer questions. Speakers include:

• Joel Levin, Executive Director, Plug In America

• Shoshana Lew, Director, Colorado Department of Transportation

• Mike Foote, Colorado State Senate

• Elise Jones, Boulder County Commissioner

• Brian Bagley, Longmont Mayor

• Steve Szabo, EV Owner

Podcast: Play in new window | Download