While funding for CalTrans’ District 9 DC Fast Charge stations under the state’s 30-30 program has been approved, the stations have yet to go out for bid. Bids likely will be released in July 2019 with construction to begin in the fall. CalTrans’ objective is to have the stations in the ground by the end of the year. However, it is more likely that they won’t be in service until the first quarter of 2020.
District 9 encompasses US Hwy 395 on the East Side of California’s Sierra Nevada. The highway serves heavy summer recreational traffic to national forests and Yosemite National Park. It also serves heavy winter traffic to the ski resort of Mammoth Mountain north of Bishop, California.
CalTrans planned DCFC stations at the Coso Junction and Division Creek rest areas and the district office in Bishop.
There are currently no non-Tesla DCFC stations on the East Side.
There are J1772 and Tesla destination charge stations in Mammoth at the resort’s hotels.
Meanwhile Electrify America has stations under construction at Coso Junction and in Bishop. The Eastern Sierra Electric Vehicle Association’s Don Condon is also reporting EA equipment on the ground in Bridgeport. According to photos on PlugShare, the Coso Junction station is quite advanced with EA’s kiosks in the ground. It’s likely that EA will have its stations operational before those of CalTrans.
In addition, ChargePoint has a station planned for Robber’s Roost on Hwy 14 in Inyokern as part of the CEC’s GFO-15-603 for Interregional Corridors. As part of the same program EV Connect has stations planned for Mojave and Inyokern. As of two weeks ago there was no sign of activity in Mojave.
These stations are necessary to make non-Tesla EV travel on US 395 and the East Side possible.
