Proposed rollback of electric vehicle charging stations could hurt rural Wisconsin tourism

Efforts by the federal government to cut back on electric vehicle charging infrastructure could ultimately harm Wisconsin’s tourism industry in rural areas. 

This week, U.S. Rep. Tony Wied, R-De Pere, proposed repealing a federal program meant to fund new EV charging stations around the country. The National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program currently remains law from the previous administration, but President Donald Trump this month suspended funding for the $5 billion program. 

Jeremiah Brockman is president of the Electric Vehicle Association’s Wisconsin chapter. Brockman recently told WPR’s “Wisconsin Today” that the lack of charging stations in rural parts of the state is preventing would-be tourists with EVs from visiting and spending their money. 

“If you go up north — and I have family up near Antigo — it’s really difficult to find charging up there,” he said. “If we don’t have charging infrastructure in the more rural parts of the state — where people want to visit because there are some beautiful parts of the state way up north — they might not get to go. They might not have the option.”

Brockman cited a survey by Harvard University researchers that found limited EV charging infrastructure is one of the main factors preventing people who are considering an EV from actually buying one. According to the research, if consumers felt more confident about the availability of charging stations, EV sales could grow by up to 8 percent of the total car market by 2030. 

EV owners do the bulk of their car charging at home, according to Brockman. He said that means the lack of charging stations in rural parts of the state isn’t limiting people from owning EVs up there as much as it’s limiting people from traveling to those rural places.

The Wisconsin Department of Transportation maintains a database of charging stations and has a plan for electrifying the transportation grid. A spokesperson for DOT didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on how losing federal funding could affect state charging station plans.