It's Alive! Charging Forward with Adaptive EV Management

At the end of the 19th century, electric vehicles (EVs) were on equal ground with gas-powered cars. New York City had a fleet of about 60 electric taxis and about one-third of all vehicles on the road were electric. But thanks to thanks to Henry Ford’s Model T, the discovery of Texas crude oil and the modern­iza­tion of U.S. roadways, gasoline-powered combustion engines would soon rule the transportation realm. 

Today, though, electric vehicles (EVs) have been making a dramatic comeback, thanks in no small part to tech­no­log­i­cal innovations like longer-lasting batteries and policies like the American Recovery and Rein­vest­ment Act of 2009, which infused more than $115 million to help build a wide-reaching network of public charging stations. According to the National Governors Association, at least 45 states now offer at least some type of incentive to accelerate adoption of EVs. And experts believe EV-favorable policies like the Bipartisan Infra­struc­ture Law, Inflation Reduction Act and various incentive programs will continue to bolster state and local confidence in this technology. Consequently, many organizations and campuses are actively developing EV programs.

But a modern EV fleet is only as powerful as its ability to evolve. Jessica Carroll, discipline leader for Intelligent Trans­porta­tion Systems at CDM Smith, refers to EV management as running a “living program.”

To achieve the management of living EV programs, orga­ni­za­tions are turning to mobility teams. Mobility teams include traffic engineers, modal specialists, urban and community planners and travel demand modelers. Combining asset condition data and leading-edge SCADA and GIS monitoring tools, these teams rely on contin­u­ously evolving plans to support the planning and financing of EV fleets and complete corridors infra­struc­ture in a sustainable manner.  

Recently, one of the world’s leading research facilities became a perfect incubator for the future of electrified infra­struc­ture. The facility’s leadership had already launched an employee electric vehicle (EV) program that installed a network of 120-volt outlets to support an early generation of all-electric, low-speed vehicles. The program, intended to advance campus sustain­abil­ity and provide more attractive spaces in order to keep and lure top talent, now needed to grow. 

Carroll and her team at CDM Smith was tasked with evaluating the path forward. "Getting existing data was a challenge," she recalls. The team inventoried each charging station across the research facility. They wrote recom­men­da­tions for repairs and upgrades, then used the inventory and industry best practices to outline a preventive maintenance program. They also reviewed the current pricing structure and station demand to recommend short-term and longer-term changes. 

“We gave guidance on what needs to be done today, but also left them with a blueprint to continue to move forward to meet their mission in the future,” Carroll said. “This document is not set in stone and can grow and evolve as the plans for the campus change.”

Today, the research lab is a leader in workplace electric vehicle charging and looking forward. Program managers have partnered with CDM Smith to increase partic­i­pa­tion and make EV a dominant mode of trans­porta­tion on campus. 

Since the ground was laid for the current EV movement more than 25 years ago, our experts have partnered with federal and state departments of trans­porta­tion to gather data and make considered recommendations for EV adoption. Our experts can help identify funding oppor­tu­ni­ties and discuss common keys to success, like smart charging, utility collab­o­ra­tion and inclusive outreach.