Electric Vehicle Efforts in CT

bus
June 30, 2021

This week, Governor Lamont made two electric vehicle related announcements, which are both major steps for our State toward an environmentally conscious future.
 
Connecticut Hydrogen and Electric Automobile Purchase Rebate (CHEAPR) Program:

  • Connecticut will initialize a suite of improvements to the CHEAPR program – the state’s successful consumer rebate program for electric vehicles (EVs) – that will provide more Connecticut residents with additional affordable access to purchase or lease an EV.
  • The newly approved incentives, which become available this month, increase rebate amounts and expand the CHEAPR program to cover used EVs as well as new EVs and provide an additional incentive for income-eligible consumers.
  • The CHEAPR program provides a cash rebate for any Connecticut resident who purchases or leases an eligible EV costing up to $42,000.

To learn more about CHEAPR and to find rebate rate, click here.
 
Federal Grant for 10 Electric Buses:

  • The Connecticut Department of Transportation is being awarded a $7.4 million grant from the Federal Transit Administration for the purchase of ten battery electric buses and ten DC fast chargers.
  • The upgrades are targeted for the CTtransit Waterbury division and will make that city’s bus depot the first bus facility in the state capable of running a 100% battery electric bus transit fleet.
  • The federal grant will be matched with $5.7 million in state funding and other sources, for a total project cost of $13.1 million, fully preparing the CTtransit Waterbury bus depot for the eventual electrification of the nearly 100 transit buses and paratransit vans used in its fleet.

Connecticut needs approximately 125,000 to 150,000 EVs by 2025 and 500,000 EVs by 2030 to meet the state’s statutorily mandated greenhouse gas reduction target. These announcements are great news for our State's environmental efforts as we look to the future.

I want to thank Governor Lamont, CT's Congressional delegation and my legislative colleagues for their avid support and advocacy on these endeavors.