Los Angeles residents now have greater access to electric vehicle (EV) charging, thanks to expanded weekend hours and the increased number of fast chargers at the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power's (LADWP) Crenshaw Customer Service Center parking lot. Located at the northeast corner of Crenshaw Blvd. and West Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., the chargers are available at no cost to motorists and represent a valuable community resource. The increased access to EV chargers greatly assists in helping reduce air pollution, improve local air quality and remove the worry of running out of power, known as "range anxiety," for EV drivers who don't have access to home chargers.
The chargers continue to be available to the public from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on weekdays. But now, under the expanded hours, the chargers are also available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. There are now (4) 25kW DC Fast Chargers and (16) Level-2 6.6kW chargers at the Crenshaw Customer Service Center parking lot. Level-2 charging can provide 10-20 miles of range per hour while the 25kW fast charging offers between 20-30 miles of range every 20 minutes of charging.
"LADWP is proud to support, implement and advocate for the increase of EV charging stations and EV adoption for ALL customers in the communities we serve," said Nancy Sutley, LADWP's Chief Sustainability Officer. "The EV chargers at our Crenshaw facility are part of an overall larger effort to modernize our customer service centers and to install 10,000 publicly accessible charging stations by 2022 while facilitating the adoption of 145,000 EVs in the city by 2022."
The benefits of owning an EV include lower mileage and maintenance costs for the owner as well as a reduction in local air pollution caused by traditional fuel vehicles. In addition, widespread EV use will help local utilities like LADWP in enhancing their grid flexibility - while reducing rates for all ratepayers.
L.A. residents and business owners can also take advantage of LADWP's "Charge Up LA!" EV Charger Rebate Program for residential, commercial and public agency customers. Businesses, multi-unit dwellings, public parking lots and public agencies are eligible for LADWP's Commercial EV Charging Station Rebate Program. Just last month, LADWP began offering increased commercial charger rebates for more powerful Direct Current Fast Chargers (DCFC). Residents looking to install EV chargers in their home garages can apply for rebates under the Residential EV Charger Rebate Program. Rebate amounts vary based on the type and power output of the charging stations. Both residential and commercial customers are eligible to apply for LADWP's EV rate discount of 2.5 cents for off-peak charging, granted the customer installs a dedicated meter to measure the charging activity. LADWP is also currently working to increase the rebate amounts on the residential program and offer an additional rebate for dedicated EV meter installations.
In addition, LADWP is working on making it easier for customers to get behind the wheel of an EV with an upgrade to its Used EV Rebate program. The newly revised program, to be announced soon, will increase the current rebate amount of $450 to $1,500 towards the purchase of a qualifying used EV or plug-in hybrid EV. LADWP seeks to assist all customers, regardless of income, in realizing the benefits of EVs.
