Electric vehicles: the Biden administration wants to standardize EV charging stations, like gas stations

Its proposed new rule would require the half-million electric vehicle chargers it plans to fund to be interoperable, the same way a gas pump works with any vehicle. Charging stations funded under the federal program would also be open to everyone — banning any membership requirements — and set a common standard for payment and other technologies. Charging stations would be built along US highways.

The new initiative is part of the administration’s efforts to make electric charging accessible to all Americans and to target key concerns preventing drivers from buying electric vehicles. Chief among these is range anxiety, the driver’s fear of not having enough charge to reach the next charging station.

The Biden administration is also targeting other concerns by demanding standardized pricing and payment systems, and pouring billions into other efforts like fast-charging battery technology.

If finalized as written, the rule will apply to chargers funded by the federal infrastructure law signed into law last November. It includes about $5 billion that will go to states to build charging networks, including funding that targets chargers along highways and other major roads.

“To support the transition to electric vehicles, we need to build a national charging network that makes finding a charge as easy as filling up at a gas station,” said Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.

CNN’s Shawna Mizelle contributed to this report.