An EV charging station in Old Town. Photo: Parker Malatesta

PARK CITY, Utah — Last month the ChargeWest – West Electric Highway was unveiled in Salt Lake City.

The brand will be used by the Charge West eight-state collaborative, which includes Utah, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, and Wyoming. The Western-centric project would create the largest electric vehicle (EV) corridor in the country.

It is the culmination of work between governors, energy offices, departments of transportation, and regional clean cities programs — one notably being Utah Clean Cities (Park City and Summit County are members).

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Utah Clean Cities administered the project, thanks to funding and support from both the Department of Electric Vehicle Technologies Program and the National Association of State Energy Offices.

Other Utah Clean Cities members include Coalville, Oakley, Francis, Alta, Moab, Salt Lake City, Cottonwood Heights, and others.

“The intermountain west is becoming one of the most visited places in the United States,” said Tammie Bostick, executive director Utah Clean Cities and the ChargeWest project lead. “We want the modern traveler to experience the same highways and byways of our western heritage with today’s new electric fuel horsepower.”

Utah is continuing to explore EV adoption and infrastructure deployments. Consumers will see over 100 new electric vehicle models coming to market in the next two years with ranges exceeding 600 miles, which will create more confidence in traveling long distances. The state’s current inventory includes 94 DC fast chargers.

“ChargeWest is recognized as a national rural model for building electric vehicle infrastructure throughout rural gateway communities, national parks, and scenic byways,” Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said in a statement. “It is a proud moment to commemorate in our state history and to be part of this eight state launch of the ChargeWest, West Electric Highway, the largest EV Corridor plan in the nation.”

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