With $100 million in federal funding on the way, Indiana lawmakers are laying the groundwork for a new, statewide electric vehicle-charging network.

The Biden-Harris administration is allocating $5 billion over the next five years to create a nationwide system of charging stations, to help encourage electric vehicle use across the nation.

Rep. Ed Soliday, R-Valparaiso, lead sponsor of a bill outlining how Indiana's charging network could operate, said the proposal is just a starting point.

"This is an iterative bill, this is not a complete answer to how we're going to handle electric vehicles," Soliday explained.

Among other things, the legislation sets standards for pricing at charging stations, and establishes new parameters the state utility commission must consider when approving new charging-station projects. The measure has bipartisan support in the General Assembly, where it has passed several committees and the House of Representatives with unanimous votes.

The bill also would allow private companies to launch pilot charging networks for public-use electric vehicles, such as school buses. Utilities could recoup the cost of the pilot networks by raising their base charges to customers.

Kerri Garvin, executive director of the nonprofit Greater Indiana Clean Cities, said the pilot programs could streamline bigger projects down the line.

"Pilots allow companies and stakeholders to evaluate the feasibility, design, associated costs and benefits for larger-scale deployments," Garvin pointed out.

According to the Pew Research Center, electric vehicle sales in the U.S. doubled from 2020 to 2021, and carmakers are planning to put an additional one million electric vehicles on the road before year's end. The transportation sector accounts for nearly a third of America's greenhouse-gas emissions.

Utah saw 13 railroad-crossing collisions that included three fatalities in 2020, according to the most recent data available from the Federal Railroad Administration.

Every five days, a child in the United States is killed in a train collision, said Buck Russel, manager of public safety for Union Pacific Railroad. So, Safe Kids Worldwide has new resources and materials to help raise awareness for families to prevent railroad-related injuries and deaths involving children.

Since 2018, Russel said, there's been a 35% increase nationwide in the number of trespassing collisions on railroads. He explained that railroads are private property, so people on railroad tracks are considered trespassers - not pedestrians.

"It's not a place to take wedding pictures, graduation pictures, record albums," he said. "They have that nostalgia feeling, the train tracks, they continue on forever into the sunset. But when you get on the train tracks, you're exhibiting those bad behaviors that our little ones are going to pick up on."

Russel encouraged Utahns to slow down and look both ways when approaching a railroad track, and said to expect a train "in any direction at any time." He reminded people that freight trains don't run on set schedules as passenger trains do.

Russel said a recent report released by Safe Kids Worldwide found that a majority of parents don't realize the importance of addressing railroad safety, despite the alarming statistics. Whether it is a railroad crossing or a collision on the tracks, he said nearly all incidents are preventable.

"Approximately every three hours, either a person or a vehicle is struck in the United States," he said. "I know personally, when I pass it on to my family members, they're just, like, 'There is no way it can be every three hours.' And it, unfortunately, really does come down to that."

Russel said most of the collision incidents take place between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Earlier this week, the Biden administration announced it has awarded more than $1.4 billion to projects around the country to improve railway safety.

Experts say consumer interest and sales of electric vehicles in Arizona and across the country aren't slowing down.

Arizona is among the top 10 states for EV auto registrations. Year-to-date, EV sales are up more than 50%, year over year, which Chris Harto, senior policy analyst at Consumer Reports, said is impressive, considering how much fuel prices have come down. However, in Arizona, the average gas price is currently $4.25 per gallon - about 40 cents more than the national average - which may entice Arizona drivers to make the switch.

Harto said interest rates might also turn out to be a factor in sales.

"Interest rates have gone up quite a bit, and I think that is going to have an effect on the whole vehicle market, regardless of vehicle type," he said. "We're not quite seeing a slowdown, quite yet."

He said he suspects the market is still trying to adjust and "catch up" after EVs - and vehicles in general - have been in such limited supply in recent years. While many have speculated that EV inventories are high, Harto countered that the "EV only" companies - such as Polstar, Rivian and Tesla - report "very low inventory."

Harto said affordability is top of mind for many people shopping for an electric vehicle. Consumer Reports found 70% of EV sales so far this year have been from just nine models, all of which start at less than $45,000 when incentives are factored in. He also said he recognizes many are concerned about the lack of charging infrastructure, but said that is changing. Arizona has nearly 1,000 charging stations, although more are in the works.

"You definitely have a group of consumers who are waiting for the federal funds that are going out to the states to really build out that national charging network," he said, "to give them that little extra bit of confidence."

He said a number of new requirements have either limited or changed which EVs can qualify for tax credits. So, of course, those that are eligible for tax credits seem to be selling better than those that don't.


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Parking lots dominate the landscapes in many cities, but state lawmakers across the country are looking to reduce the number of unused parking spaces. More than a dozen states that considered ending or reducing parking mandates in 2023 legislative sessions, following Oregon's lead. Nearly every city in the U.S. requires a certain number of parking spaces be built for each new business and housing complex.

Michael Andersen, a senior researcher with Sightline Institute, a Northwest think tank focused on sustainability, said policymakers are reconsidering past efforts to overbuild parking lots.

"People are saying, 'Wait a minute, wait a minute, there are a bunch of unintended consequences here," he explained. "There are a bunch of longer-term side effects of building our cities with these expanses of parking lots everywhere. Let's let cities evolve as they will.'"

Andersen added creating too many lots has environmental, social and economic costs. The boom in legislation, from Vermont to Oklahoma, addressing this issue comes after Oregon approved a law last year reducing parking mandates. In the state's eight largest metro areas, mandates are eliminated completely in certain situations, such as within a half-mile of frequent public transit.

Andersen said this issue is an extension of the larger housing affordability problem gripping cities both big and small and added the upsurge in telecommuting that accompanied the pandemic prompted a large migration of people from big to small.

"These housing shortages have rapidly become more bipartisan because they're manifesting in new areas, and I think people are just looking for ways to cut the cost of housing," he said.

California also eliminated or reduced parking mandates last year.