OHIO —- As electric vehicle ownership increases, so does the necessity for more EV charging stations. Drive Ohio recently announced the deployment of nearly a dozen more new charging stations slated to come to the state.

What You Need To Know

  • 22 More NEVI charging stations have been funded to come to Ohio as part of phase two of the NEVI program. Phase one included 23 charging stations announced in 2022. 
  • Long-distance driving is the biggest challenge for EV owners who need to charge confidently, safely and regularly during road trips

  • Currently the Ohio Turnpike provides 16 Electrify America charging stations

“You have to have a plan and a backup plan. So it really should be as easy as I should get in my vehicle and just be able the same as, internal combustion engine or typical gasoline car,” Mary Beth Naim said. “I should just be able to drive to Michigan. But for now, I still have to kind of plan my route and make sure I have a charging station on the way.”

Naim is an environmentalist and Co-facilitator at Third Act Ohio. She is also an electric vehicle owner who regularly drives out of state, but right now she has to take extra caution to make sure her vehicle does not run out of energy on the way.

“It’s only when I’m driving, pretty much out of state or, you know, further in state, Columbus, Cincinnati that I have to worry about where I’m going to charge,” she said. “I frequently go to Pittsburgh and Erie, Michigan. That’s when it gets a little more difficult.”

“So I happen to be in Michigan this weekend.” She explained,  “I drove there fine on Saturday and stopped at the service plaza, the last one in Ohio, before you go into Michigan. I came back on Monday and the EV chargers were like out of the ground and on the side. They’re replacing them, putting in newer technology, more consistent, experience for the user. But I was out of luck because, now what do I do?”

“So, luckily, there are some apps that you can use to look up where the charging locations are. And I found one. I drove to Elyria, and I was able to pick up a charge there at a shell gas station. But it really is, a little of a nail biter as you’re watching your battery percentage go down, and there aren’t many locations around you in the app.”

By the end of 2025, this scenario is expected to change for the better.

“Right now, a lot of the charging that folks do is done at home, where you have time for your car to charge, you know, the eight hours overnight before your commute the next day. But this fast charging infrastructure will enable people to be able to travel all over the state, all over the country, and know that they can stop somewhere and quickly charge up in 30 to 40 minutes,” said Breanna Badanes, Drive Ohio spokesperson, ODOT headquarters in Columbus.

In addition to charging speed and more available charging stations, EV owners have some serious additional concerns.

“I’ve been out in the driving rain before. We don’t have the canopies overhead like you would have at a gas station.” Naim said. “Lighting is important. Even, like, you’ll see dealerships show up on the app, they’ll have chargers, but then you find out they’re not open after hours.”

Drive Ohio is making an effort to address concerns like Naim’s with the recent announcement of the deployment of nearly a dozen charging stations. “Our team is trying to put ourselves in the shoes of that EV driver who has to stop in charge at 10 p.m.. Is it somewhere that you would feel safe sitting for 30 minutes while your vehicle charges?” Naim said.

As EV infrastructure continues to grow, so do electric vehicle ownership considerations. “It’s just so important that we start moving forward with electric vehicle infrastructure. just to try to stop burning fossil fuels,” Naim said. “We definitely want to be moving forward with EVs. But there are struggles. So we’ve got to be realistic about what the current situation is.”

“I’m passionate about the electric vehicles trying to move away from fossil fuels. So I’m willing to take those extra steps and annoyances to go out of my way a little, or have to deal with different apps on each charging station,” Naim said.  “For the general public, I think they don’t want to have to worry about that.”

“This is new technology and just like any new technology, it’s going to be a little strange to folks in the beginning,” Badanes said. 

“I think once you start to get exposed to not only the electric vehicles themselves, but the charging infrastructure, that really increases the likelihood of you potentially purchasing an EV. And, you know, at Drive Ohio, it’s not our business what vehicle you purchase,” she continued. “We just want you to have the option to purchase the vehicle that’s right for you. So that’s what this program is really about: installing infrastructure to give Ohioans options for their vehicles in the future.”

For now, EV owners will still need to plan ahead and know changes are coming. Naim is already looking forward.

“And just last month, you were starting to be able to buy a converter from a Tesla charger,” she explained that is a big development for EV owners. “So we’re looking for all those initiatives to converge and hopefully really build up this infrastructure to the point where we need it to be. To be confident when you get on the road that you’re going to get to your destination without any issues.”