Photo credit: city of Roswell

Roswell is always looking for green solutions to improve environmental sustainability in the community. The city is now helping residents and visitors take that message to the streets by installing four electric vehicle charging stations for public use at City Hall and two parks.

Roswell was among a select group of public organizations chosen to receive support through Charge Georgia, an incentive program designed by the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority to increase the number of EV charging stations throughout the state. The city will begin installing the stations in February, and they are expected to be ready for public use this March. "The city of Roswell is thrilled to be one of the first cities in Georgia to offer public EV charging stations," said Michael Fischer, deputy city administrator. "We are always looking for ways to help our community reduce the size of our collective footprint. These public stations are a very direct, practical way to provide access to green resources for our residents and visitors."

Roswell was awarded rebates totaling more than $16,000 to help cover the costs of their four GE DuraStation® double-pedestal electric vehicle charging stations. The DuraStation offers Level-2 (240v/30amp) public stations with two charging connectors each, meaning two vehicles can charge at any given time at the following stations: Two charging stations at City Hall (38 Hill Street) — four charging connectors available;

One charging station at Roswell Area Park (10495 Woodstock Road) — two charging connectors available; and

One charging station at East Roswell Park (9000 Fouts Road ) — two charging connectors available. Owing to high driver satisfaction, increased environmental sustainability interest, federal and state tax incentives, and expanding choices and price points, EVs are the fastest-growing segment of light-duty cars in the United States, with sales up 26 percent from just one year ago, the city said.

Today, there are more than 285,000 EVs on U.S. roads — and a heavy concentration of those can be found in the metro Atlanta area.

"Atlanta's northern suburbs are one of the hotbeds of EV driving in the country," said Jeff Cohen, business development leader for GE Electric Vehicle Charging and the founder of the Atlanta Electric Vehicle Development Coalition. "But the number of EV cars has far outpaced the availability of charging stations, creating 'range anxiety' for drivers. That's why the city of Roswell's public charging options, and those of the other Charge Georgia partners, are so important to create an infrastructure for this more sustainable mode of transportation."