NJTA Board Approves Deal to add Electric Vehicle Chargers at Eight New Jersey Turnpike Service Areas

The New Jersey Turnpike Authority Commissioners today approved an agreement that will bring dozens of new electric vehicle charging stations to eight Turnpike service areas, increasing the total of EV chargers on the Turnpike from 20 to 76. The licensing agreement allows Tesla to install eight V3 Superchargers at each of six service areas and to double the number of Superchargers already in place at two other service areas. Tesla also will build the utility infrastructure necessary for third-party providers to install at least two dozen additional non-Tesla charging stations on the Turnpike.

“Our ambitious goal to register 330,000 zero emission vehicles by 2025 is only possible with a collaborative effort across state agencies and our private sector partners to further develop New Jersey’s electric vehicle ecosystem,” said Governor Phil Murphy. “Today’s announcement builds on the momentum of legislation I signed into law last month establishing a 10-year, $300 million rebate program to incentivize electric vehicle ownership throughout the Garden State. With this important addition to New Jersey’s renewable energy infrastructure, we are one step closer to achieving 100 percent clean energy by 2050.”

“This is an agreement with Tesla, but Tesla owners are not the only drivers who will enjoy greater access to charging facilities on the Turnpike as a result of it,” said New Jersey Department of Transportation Commissioner Diane Gutierrez-Scaccetti, who serves as Chair of the Turnpike board. “Tesla will install infrastructure that will offer opportunities for other providers to install non-Tesla chargers, so all electric vehicle owners who use the Turnpike will benefit.”

“More than a quarter of a billion vehicles travel on the Turnpike every year,” said NJTA Executive Director John Keller. “Providing charging stations along the roadway will make the use of electric vehicles feasible for a larger number of those drivers. That will reduce emissions, improve air quality, and help New Jersey accomplish its ambitious clean energy goals.”

Since Governor Murphy has taken office, his administration has leveraged $24 million in Volkswagen settlement funding for electrification projects, including awarding the first EV bus pilot in the state. Last summer, the Murphy Administration established the Partnership to Plug-In—a multiagency effort launched to identify the necessary mapping, permitting, and incentives available to accelerating EV adoption in New Jersey. In January, Governor Murphy signed the most ambitious EV law in the nation, making available $300 million in zero-emission vehicle rebate funding over the next 10 years. Today’s announcement builds off these actions and investments across the state.

The Turnpike Authority granted Tesla a license in 2014 to install on a pilot basis eight charging stalls on Turnpike property – four at the Molly Pitcher Service Area on the southbound Turnpike between interchanges 8A and 8 and four at the Joyce Kilmer Service Area on the northbound Turnpike between interchanges 8A and 9. The Turnpike Authority and the company considered that pilot program a success, and they have agreed to expand upon it.

Under the amended licensing agreement approved by the Turnpike Commissioners today, Tesla will double the number of charging stalls at Molly Pitcher and Joyce Kilmer, bringing the total at those service areas to eight apiece. The company will also install eight charging stalls in each of these additional service areas:

Clara Barton (southbound between interchanges 2 and 1)

John Fenwick (northbound between interchanges 1 and 2)

Walt Whitman (southbound between interchanges 4 and 3)

James Fenimore Cooper (northbound between interchanges 4 and 5)

Richard Stockton (southbound between interchanges 7A and 7)

Woodrow Wilson (northbound between interchanges 7 and 7A)

All 64 Tesla chargers on the New Jersey Turnpike will be V3 Superchargers, the newest version of the company’s proprietary charging technology.

Tesla has 223 Superchargers in New Jersey.

The company will pay all design, construction, installation, and maintenance costs for the new superchargers at Turnpike locations, as well as the cost of installing the necessary infrastructure to enable the installation of non-Tesla chargers by other providers. The work is being done at no cost to toll payers or taxpayers. The Turnpike Authority will be receiving a licensing fee for each of the charging stalls at each location.

Tesla has also agreed to work closely with the Turnpike Authority to provide anonymized charging data that will help the State make better planning decisions.

There are already charging stations available for non-Tesla electric vehicles at three Turnpike service areas -- Molly Pitcher, Joyce Kilmer, and Vince Lombardi. Those are operated by EVgo. That company is also installing chargers at three Garden State Parkway service areas – Forked River, Brookdale North, and Brookdale South.

Tesla plans to begin installation as soon as it has the necessary permits and approvals. Once all the Tesla charging stations called for in the licensing agreement have been installed, there will be electric vehicle charging facilities at nine of the 12 New Jersey Turnpike service areas.