Cross-country EV driver stops in Region, where charging stations are becoming more common (2024)

HAMMOND — Daphne Dixon is on the road again, driving a Rivian R1S electric vehicle from coast to coast to test the nation's burgeoning EV charging station network.

Dixon, executive director of Live Green Network, has been driving 4,100 miles across 17 states from Norwalk, Connecticut to Tacoma, Washington. She stopped at the Indiana Welcome Center just off the Borman Expressway in Hammond Tuesday morning to test out the EV chargers there.

One of theGOEVIN charging stations was down; the other was charging higher rates than were common on the rest of the trip. It was more in line with the cost of getting gas when it's normally cheaper.

"What inspired me to do this was to identify solutions to barriers to a positive charging experience," Dixon said. "One of the barriers is the charging experience can be confusing or seem difficult and that creates resistance to purchasing an electric vehicle. The charging experience when people are out and about seems overwhelming. They're not sure how to do it."

Common points of confusion include how to charge, what it's going to cost and ways to access the software needed to pay.

"Every charging station is pretty much a different experience so it's inconsistent so it causes people stress," she said. "Across the country, from states east to west, we're collecting data about the charging experience. We're going to give it to the local Clean Cities coalitions and the local zoning commission and staff."

Live Green Network is distributing zoning recommendations to local authorities along the route to encourage best practices to make the charging experience as convenient and painless as possible. It for instance is recommending cover to shield motorists from the rain and elements, retractable cords to make it easier to charge and proximity to services to ensure convenience.

"When people are charging their vehicle it's important to make the charging experience as similar to getting gasoline as possible so that most people feel comfortable doing it," she said. "If the charging experience is different from putting gas in your car, people are going to be resistant to it because it's difficult and something they have to learn. Ideally, charging should be as similar to getting gas as possible so it doesn't create stress for people and resistance."

Northwest Indiana is home to a growing number of EV charging stations, including NIPSCO charging stations at the Indiana Welcome Center, the Aldi in Chesterton off of I-80/94 and Rt 49 at Indian Boundary Road, the Indiana Toll Road in Portage, the Meijer in Merrillville off of I-65 and US 30 and the Meijer in Valparaiso off of US 2 and Rt 49. There are Tesla Superchargers in Merrillville, Munster, Chesterton, Portage and Fair Oaks.

Shell, Blink, ChargePoint and AmpUp also operate a smattering of charging stations across the Northwest Indiana. Most can be found by government offices, at gas stations or outside businesses like big-box stores.

"Car manufacturers are expanding electric vehicles. At some point, because that's what auto manufacturers are building, we're all going to have to, whether we like it or not, adapt to a new type of vehicle," Dixon said. "That will require partnerships and collaborations from everybody. It's really everybody's responsibility to work together. That's why we wanted to do this road trip this year. We wanted to know what we can do to work together."

Live Green Network also shares the data it gathers with EV charging station makers and the federal government so ensure the system works for everybody.

"The infrastructure is very important to adoption. We're seeing every day new stations going in," she said. "There's times I've driven up to a charging station and had trouble initiating and when I call the owner they say they just installed it yesterday and I'm the first customers. A lot of people think there isn't a lot of charging infrastructure but there's more than people realize. It's just moving so fast, people don't realize how many stations there are. The issue is as these stations are going in they are put in in a way that prioritizes the user experience so that we don't fill up the country with charging stations that don't meet the needs with people."

GOEVINhas more than 60 EV charging stations across the state, most of which were installed by utilities like NIPSCO, Drive Clean Indiana Spokeswoman Danielle Hayes said.

"EVs are getting there in Indiana. Indiana isn't quite there yet but one day soon through trial and error we can get there," she said. "The EV charging infrastructure is getting there. It's becoming more available."

She works with St. John-based Drive Clean Indiana, a statewide group that encourages the use of electric vehicles and lower-carbon alternatives that are better for the environment.

"We're figuring out locations that are in need for chargers and where to put those. We do stay in contact with NIPSCO and they do check on their chargers relatively often for us," she said.

The industry faces a chicken-and-egg situation in which more charging infrastructure is needed to encourage more widespread adoption of electric vehicles but charging stations get installed based on demand.

"We are pioneers here. We are figuring this all out for other people," she said. "We're not California. We're Indiana. We have to continue moving forward even if issues come up. We'll find a way around it. It might be early in the game for some people. But if we continue, year by year we're getting closer."