According to a Department of Energy report, has the second highest number of electric vehicle charging stations in Tennessee, behind Nashville, but ahead of Memphis and Chattanooga.
Between March and December 2011, Knoxville drivers charged up more than 7,100 times -- twice as many as in Chattanooga.
And 28 more charging stations are expected in Knoxville by June, including 10 solar charging stations in partnership with Oak Ridge National Laboratory, says Knoxville News Sentinel reporter Gerald Witt in a recent article.
Knoxville businesses such as Cracker Barrel , Three Rivers Market, the Crowne Plaza hotel and others already have stations available for customers.
The growth is fueled by a $99.8 million grant from DOE to ECOtality to install charging sites. Knoxville is one of four cities in Tennessee and one of 18 in the country to benefit from the money.
Out of town visitors and local travelers in the Knoxville area now have more fueling options for their Electric Vehicles. Four Knoxville area hotels operated by Kana Hotel Group have installed eight charging stations positioned in preferred parking spaces.
With installations completed, you can now charge your vehicle at:
Hampton Inn Lenoir City -585 Ft. Loudon Medical Center Dr., Lenoir City 37772
Holiday Inn Express Knoxville - East - 730 Rufus Graham Road, Knoxville 37924
Hampton Inn Knoxville - East 7445 Sawyer Road, Knoxville 37924
Holiday Inn Express & Suites - 111 Hillvale Road, Clinton 37716
"We worked with ECOtality to install Level 2 charging stations at four of our Knoxville area hotels. Providing travelers green fueling options as they visit Knoxville is the next step in our sustainability efforts. Aside from Knoxville, we have also installed them at our two Nashville area locations," said Kevin Mahoney, president of Kana Hotel Group, in a press release.
ECOtality and Cracker Barrel Old Country Store today unveiled the first Blink Direct Current Fast Charger in Tennessee at the Lebanon Cracker Barrel.
This is the first of 12 Cracker Barrel locations statewide that will install DC Fast Chargers as a part of The EV Project. The stations are able to charge a battery to 80 percent capacity in under 30 minutes--the fastest charge rate currently available.
"By strategically placing Blink charging stations, we are collecting the data needed to build a commercial infrastructure which will untether drivers from their garages," said Jonathan Read, CEO of ECOtality. "We identified destination locations like Cracker Barrel as ideal for charging stations--places where people can grab a meal, charge up and go."
ECOtality worked closely with Cracker Barrel during the site selection process, and took into account factors ranging from traffic patterns, retail destinations and input from other regional partners. "The Tennessee Triangle," a 425-mile stretch of interstate highway connecting Nashville, Knoxville and Chattanooga, is the ideal location for Cracker Barrel's 12 DC Fast Chargers, which are well suited for high-traffic commercial locations and major transportation corridors.
The Tennessee Renewable Energy and Economic Development Council will host an East Tennessee forum 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. October 7 at the Tellico West Conference Center at Grand Vista Resort in Vonore.
Panelists will discuss strategies to develop alternative energies in East Tennessee and will present clean energy case studies.
Topics for the alternative energies panel include:
Feedstock Development for Renewable Energy
Municipal Wastes to alternative transportation fuel
Clean Energy Partnership Opportunities for Local Governments & Businesses
Solar Research at ORNL
Clean Energy goals of the Tennessee Valley Authority
Case studies to be discussed:
Energy Efficiency Block Grants Update
Geothermal Opportunities for Local Governments
Solar Energy basics
Electric vehicles in Tennessee
Compressed Natural Gas in Tennessee
Registration is free through Oct. 3, afterwards a late fee of $15 applies. Seating is limited to 125. For information and to register email treedc08@yahoo.com.
Tennessee Renewable Energy & Economic Development Council is a statewide grassroots coalition of 65 mayors formed by the University of Tennessee to promote renewable energy with economic development.
Knoxville's Crowne Plaza hotel is the first commercial site in the city to install a vehicle charging station as part of the state's EV Project.
ECOtality's EV Project is teaming up with Knoxville's Crowne Plaza hotel and Nissan USA today to unveil the first of 12 charging station sites in the Knoxville area, reports Laura Vela in the Knoxville News Sentinel.
Representatives from the organizations will introduce the station in the hotel's parking garage and demonstrate how it works.
The charging station will have two chargers and use will be free to customers of the hotel. Other users will pay $8.
More sites with charging stations in the works: --Knoxville solar firm Sustainable Future -- Johnson Family of Restaurants in Sevier County --Pilot Corp. -- BP -- Cracker Barrel -- town of Farragut parks --University of Tennessee.
Stephanie Cox, Tennessee-area manager for ECOtality, said Knoxville has the most planned municipal charging stations in the state.
A letter of estimate from Broadway Electric Service Corp. in Nashville contains a list of the proposed charger locations as part of ECOtality's EV Project.
According to the letter, the possible locations are McGhee Tyson Airport, the Civic Coliseum, Ijams Nature Park, Lakeshore Park, Tyson Park, West Hills Park, Victor Ashe Park, Caswell Park, the Fort Kid and Knoxville Museum of Art parking lot, Dwight Kessel Garage, the Volunteer Landing lot, the Locust Street Garage, an Old City lot off Jackson Avenue, the Market Square Garage and the State Street Garage.
McGhee Tyson Airport, the Civic Coliseum, Caswell Park, and the Dwight Kessel, Locust Street, Market Square, and State Street garages would be receiving the EV Project's wall chargers, according to the report from Broadway Electric.
The other tentative locations would install pedestal charging stations.
Government and industry organization speakers will discuss the Clean Cities program, fuel economy, idle reduction practices and options, fuel efficient vehicles and vehicle fleet GPS systems and benefits.
Registration is $15 and includes lunch. To register or for more information, call 865-974-9665.
Originally announced in 2009, followed by the announcement of a Tennessee electrification "corridor" in 2010, ECOtality's EV Project is finally underway, reports Laura Vela in the Knoxville News Sentinel.
One program participant, John Craig, received his Nissan Leaf last month and uses it to commute from the Loudon County area to his job in downtown Knoxville.
While running out of charge hasn't been a concern, Craig says he is excited about the installation of public charging stations.
The commercial implementation of those stations began last week when the company dedicated several charging stations June 13 at the Loews Hotel in Nashville.
ECOtality stated that more information specific to the Knoxville-area chargers will be released later this summer.
"Our focus up until recently has been on the residential. ... We would like to keep the conversation on the statewide basis and within the next couple weeks have more news for Knoxville," said Stephanie Cox, Tennessee-area manager at ECOtality.
Read more about the EV Project at the Knoxville News Sentinel.
Eco Travel Plaza in Crossville, Tenn. will unveil its energy efficient remodel next week.
The Eco Travel Plaza, in partnership with the East Tennessee Clean Fuels Coalition, has implemented or is planning up to 40 total initiatives to increase the site's overall energy efficiency, and provide cleaner, healthier options. Emissions reductions and eliminating unnecessary diesel fuel use are key parts of the effort.
The site received a $580,000 grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 2009 to install Truck Stop Electrification equipment from two vendors at its parking spots, reducing engine idling. The center will use a 35kw solar system to offset some of the costs.
"With the EPA grant we had an opportunity, but we wanted to be more creative. We chose to add to the benefits of anti-idling technology by further reduce emissions by replacing grid electricity with solar. Then we sought to save other energy usage by replacing inefficient equipment. ... Our goal now is to further reduce our energy footprint, and become energy neutral," said Don Demko, Eco Travel Plaza owner.
In addition to the TSE equipment and solar system, other initiatives include:
LED exterior lights and energy efficient indoor lighting and HVAC Automatic shut-off faucets, waterless urinals and water pressure reducers Recycling of paper, glass, plastics onsite and recycling used cooking oil for biodiesel production Power Controller to reduce electricity use and peak demand
Two electric vehicle DC Fast Charge stations and an electronics recycling center are also planned.
ECOtality representatives and state officials gathered in Nashville today to officially dedicate the company's Blink Pedestal charging stations in Tennessee along with the installation of four public charging stations at the Loews Vanderbilt Hotel. The hotel is the first commercial partner in the city to install a charger.
"As the future home of the Nissan Leaf, Middle Tennessee is positioned to be a leader in the electric vehicle industry," said Karl Dean, Mayor of Nashville. "We are proud to be one of a very select group of U.S. communities to have a critical mass of publicly accessible EV charging infrastructure."
ECOtality began installations of its Blink Level 2 Wall Mount charging stations in EV Project regions nationwide last December, and has since installed more than 1,200 commercial and residential chargers. It plans to deploy approximately 2,500 residential, commercial
and DC fast charging stations in Tennessee by the end of the year.
The EV Project, managed by ECOtality and funded by the Department of Energy through stimulus grants, will provide an electric vehicle infrastructure to support the deployment of 8,300 vehicles.
"Tennessee is one of the original pilot launch markets for The EV Project and has the largest geographic footprint of any EV Project area," said Jonathan Read, CEO of ECOtality. "We are on track to electrify more than 500 miles of EV freeway throughout Tennessee."
The company said anyone will be able to charge at Blink charging stations using a Blink InCard and it also offers a membership program. For more information visit the Blink Network website.
ECOtality is currently in discussions with property owners for installations of public charging stations. Last year, Cracker Barrel announced it would install charging stations in 24 Tennessee locations as part of the project. Some national retailers are also on board, including Sears, Fred Meyer, Macy's, BP/Arco, and Best Buy.
Businesses in the state of Tennessee interested in hosting Blink charging stations should contact Stephanie Cox, Tennessee Area Manager at ECOtality, at scox@ecotality.com or 615.504.4928.
