For Immediate Release

THE PLAINS, Ohio — The Rural Action electric vehicle charging station located at 8 N. Plains is now open for public use, 24/7!

This free public charger helps advance the mission of Rural Action’s Sustainable Energy program to reduce barriers to EV adoption in southeast Ohio.

AmeriCorps VISTA Jacob Richard explained that “charging availability is a top concern around EV charging.”

“We ran into situations where people wanted to charge after 7 p.m. and were unable to, so they had to continue on into Athens,” Richard said. “After looking at the data and realizing it was feasible for us to offer free 24/7 charging, it was a no-brainer.”

The Level 2 charger typically adds about 25–30 miles of range per hour; the time to fully charge an EV with a 100-mile battery is 4–5 hours. To date, by using the EV charging station, people have avoided 421 kilograms of greenhouse gas emissions.

By helping create a network of public charging stations, we can make it more realistic for people in the Appalachian region to own an EV. First installed in January 2022, The Plains’ first and only EV charging station was originally available for public use between 7 a.m.–7 p.m. daily.

The station at 8 N. Plains will continue to be free to the public. EV owners will need to download the Chargepoint app and have an account to use the station.

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CONTACT
Alexandria Polanosky
Media and Communications Director
alexandria@ruralaction.org
740.677.4047 ext. 140