The RV Industry Association (RVIA) has recently collaborated with the global engineering firm Black and Veatch to release a report and financial analysis advocating for federal funding to be used to install pull-through electric vehicle (EV) charging stations.
These stations are designed to meet the needs of RVers today and well into the future. The report comes as a response to the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which allocates $5 billion for states to install DC fast charging to fill in charging gaps and $2.5 billion for local governments to deploy community charging hubs in urban and rural communities.
Jason Rano, RVIA’s vice president of Government Affairs, emphasized the importance of establishing more RV-accessible pull-through charging stations for consumers.
This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to deploy EV charging nationwide and the need already exists with RVers already pulling their RVs with electric vehicles,” he said.
The report provides an overview of the current electric vehicle landscape, the consumer’s need for pull-through charging, and the importance of designing for pull-through charging, as per a News & Insights report of the RVIA.
It concludes that the momentum in electric vehicle sales and adoption across the United States can only be sustained if the entire electric vehicle consumer population can access convenient, safe charging infrastructure along interstates, highway corridors, and near popular destinations, including in rural communities that RVers frequent.
The report also highlights various use cases, focusing on the importance of larger electric vehicles easily accessing charging stations.
These use cases include electric vehicles, such as the Rivian R1T and Ford F150 Lighting, that are already pulling a towable RV (towables make up over 88% of the RV market), electrified motorized RVs and electric assist trailers, and medium and heavy-duty vehicles.
Furthermore, the report points out that RVers who drive an electric vehicle and pull a towable RV will need to charge more frequently given the impact that towing has on an electric vehicle’s range. These RVers will be seeking out charging more frequently, ultimately spending more time and money at charging sites.
Pull-through charging also leads to more efficient use of pull-in charging. Without pull-through charging, electric vehicles with towables would either have to decouple and park the trailer somewhere or, along with other medium and heavy-duty vehicles, potentially pull across multiple charging spots blocking chargers.
While pull-through charging would likely require more investment, the financial analysis shows that site hosts could recoup that investment in just a few years.