The grants will fund roughly 7,500 new chargers in neighborhoods and along key freeway corridors.

The Biden administration’s push to electrify the transportation sector continues with the announcement of $623 million in grants for electric car charging infrastructure.
According to Aarian Marshall and Matt Simon in Wired, “The funding is the latest chunk of change to be released from a total of $7.5 billion earmarked for charging and greener fueling in 2021’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.” The money is aimed at supporting the installation of 7,500 charging ports in primarily rural and low-income areas.
“The country currently has almost 161,000 charging ports, according to the US Department of Energy. A National Renewable Energy Laboratory study released last summer suggested the country will need 1.2 million by 2030 to meet demand from the growing national EV fleet.” Having a comprehensive network of accessible charging stations will help ease drivers’ concerns about driving range and encourage faster adoption of electric vehicles for consumers and commercial fleets. According to Marshall and Simon, “Emerging research suggests that just seeing chargers around makes drivers more likely to go electric.”
FULL STORY: The White House Just Announced a $623 Million EV-Charging Bonanza

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

In Urban Planning, AI Prompting Could be the New Design Thinking
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Cal Fire Chatbot Fails to Answer Basic Questions
An AI chatbot designed to provide information about wildfires can’t answer questions about evacuation orders, among other problems.

What Happens if Trump Kills Section 8?
The Trump admin aims to slash federal rental aid by nearly half and shift distribution to states. Experts warn this could spike homelessness and destabilize communities nationwide.

Sean Duffy Targets Rainbow Crosswalks in Road Safety Efforts
Despite evidence that colorful crosswalks actually improve intersection safety — and the lack of almost any crosswalks at all on the nation’s most dangerous arterial roads — U.S. Transportation Secretary Duffy is calling on states to remove them.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Appalachian Highlands Housing Partners
Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie