Daily EV news · US · 18 August 2026

Maryland's transportation department has conditionally awarded five public fast-charging projects under Round 3 of its NEVI Programme, covering Prince George's, Frederick, Montgomery, Charles and Baltimore counties. The awards total approximately 3.7 million dollars in federal funding, supported by around 918,000 dollars in private-sector matching funds, with conditional awardees including Tesla, ElectraStop and Universal EV. Maryland launched its NEVI Programme in 2024 and has since made 70 fast-charging ports available to the public, with another 104 ports from Rounds 1 and 2 in development.

Why it matters: The conditional awards signal new procurement opportunities along Maryland's major travel corridors, with named suppliers Tesla, ElectraStop and Universal EV now positioned to deliver infrastructure. For CPOs and contractors, the state's phased rollout demonstrates sustained NEVI pipeline activity, with 174 ports already live or under construction and further rounds likely as Maryland addresses remaining charging gaps.

JD Power's 2026 U.S. Electric Vehicle Experience Public Charging Study found customer satisfaction with DC fast chargers rose 12 points year on year to 666 on a 1,000 point scale, with charger availability improving by 27 points, location safety by 18 points and cost of charging by 18 points. The public charging non charge visit rate fell to 12%, down from 14% a year earlier and the lowest level recorded in the study. Three new OEM backed DC fast charging networks, including IONNA, which ranked highest among DC fast charger stations in its first year of award eligibility, have recently launched and performed well on ease of charging, charging speed and charger availability.

Why it matters: The 27 point jump in charger availability and record low failure rate signal that network reliability is finally catching up with deployment pace, reducing a key barrier to fleet electrification. The strong debut of OEM backed networks suggests vertically integrated charging models may set new operational benchmarks that independent CPOs will need to match to compete for site partnerships and driver loyalty.

Writing in Utility Dive, experts from non profit GRID Alternatives argue that renters and multifamily housing residents face a structural 'renter's penalty' because public and shared charging electricity can cost up to six times more than residential rates. They propose that utilities tie affordability programmes to the customer rather than the home meter, ensuring predictable charging costs regardless of housing type. The piece frames the disparity as a barrier to equitable transportation electrification across the United States.

Why it matters: For CPOs and procurement teams serving multifamily or public sites, utility rate reform that follows the customer could reshape site economics and unlock demand from the roughly tens of millions of US renters currently priced out of affordable EV charging.