Until now, the focus of EV station builders has been on connecting the coasts and establishing a strong charging infrastructure in EV-friendly cities on the West Coast. However, the northern and central Midwest regions have received relatively little attention in terms of charging infrastructure development. This week, a new charging corridor was announced by US Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and Canadian Minister of Transport Omar Alghabra, aiming to address this gap.
Spanning 870 miles, the Alternative Fuel Corridor will feature EV charging stations every 50 miles, connecting Kalamazoo, Michigan, and Quebec City, Quebec. The route will primarily follow I-94, utilizing the tunnel from Detroit to Canada, and continue along highways 401 and 20 through Toronto and Montreal, respectively, with highway 40 leading to Quebec City.
A total of 215 charging stations will be installed along the corridor, including 154 between Quebec City and Toronto, and an additional 61 between Toronto and Detroit. While at least one DC fast-charger will be available at each station, the exact number of stations linking Kalamazoo to Detroit has not yet been announced.
The stations will be located within 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) of the highways, providing some flexibility in positioning them near existing fast-food clusters, such as Tim Horton’s locations in Canada. This corridor aims to cover one of the busiest trade and passenger transportation routes between the two countries, passing through Canada’s auto manufacturing hubs. Most of the stations will be situated on the Canadian side of the border.
The Honorable Omar Alghabra, Canada’s Minister of Transport, stated, “This first cross-border alternative fuel corridor will help drivers to travel across the border and charge or refuel worry-free,” highlighting its contribution to cleaner air and cost savings on traditional fuels.
Interestingly, the corridor does not have a name exclusively tied to EVs, potentially leaving room for future inclusion of hydrogen stations. In March of this year, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau unveiled plans for an investment tax credit to support clean technology manufacturing, including measures to promote clean hydrogen as a fuel source. This suggests the possibility of a dedicated hydrogen corridor for trucks linking Canada’s manufacturing centers in the future.
However, at present, the corridor is solely focused on passenger EVs, with no mention of specific stations for heavy trucks.
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