Ontario putting $91M toward electric vehicle chargers at rest stops, parks

This Aug. 23, 2020 photo shows a long line of unsold 2020 models charge outside a Tesla dealership in Littleton, Colo. The European Union is lacking sufficient charging infrastructure for electric vehicles, according to the bloc's external auditor. In a report published Tuesday, April 13, 2021, the European Court of Auditors said users are gaining more harmonized access to charging networks but the EU is still “a long way from reaching its Green Deal target of 1 million charging points by 2025." (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Ontario is putting $91 million toward installing electric vehicle chargers at highway rest stops, carpool parking lots, parks and hockey arenas.

It's the first time the Progressive Conservative government has funded charging stations for electric vehicles.

The province is also introducing a Rural Connectivity Fund through which municipalities can apply for funding to install electric vehicle chargers in their communities.

Premier Doug Ford has recently been pitching Ontario as ideally positioned to produce electric vehicles, with his auto strategy aiming to build at least 400,000 electric vehicles and hybrids in the province by 2030, and establish a battery production facility.

It comes more than three years after Ford scrapped electric vehicle rebates, stopped building provincially funded charging stations, and dropped a requirement for new homes to include wiring for potential EV chargers.

Electric vehicle charging stations are also set to be installed at most ONroute rest stops by the summer, though that is being done by Hydro One and Ontario Power Generation and doesn't involve direct funding from the provincial government itself.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 22, 2022.