Atlanta’s first regional transportation electrification plan aims to make the 11-county metro area an electric vehicle hub for the southeast using a four-pronged approach and hopes of public buy-in.
The Atlanta Regional Commission adopted the plan at a Jan. 8 board meeting, kicking off a plan to rapidly multiply the number of electric vehicles in the region while adding more charging stations in neglected areas, developing the vehicle-adjacent workforce and helping with broader climate planning efforts.
It’s not Atlanta’s first push for electric vehicles — the commission has long shared its support for the more environmentally friendly cars on the region’s busy roads. Previously, the ARC estimated more than 100,000 people drove into Atlanta each day. The newly-launched plan is funded by the Federal Highway Administration.
A United States Department of Energy report from August 2024 ranked Georgia eighth among states with the highest number of electric vehicle registrations, with around 85,000 registrations by the end of 2023.
“We know that electric vehicles will play an increasingly important role in our region in the years to come,” ARC CEO Anna Roach said. “This landmark plan will help guide investments in metro Atlanta to accommodate this historic EV transformation and ensure that it occurs in an equitable fashion.”
The popularity of electric vehicles is a springboard for the plan, which used the current landscape and forecasted demand to create a policy framework with four goals.
The first goal is to expand charging infrastructure. Currently, electric vehicle chargers are clustered inside the city perimeter and northern suburbs. But the stations are lacking south of I-20 and in other metro areas. Building chargers requires certain knowledge and processes, so the commission aims to provide templates and resources to help local governments build.
The Transportation Planning Commission’s Head of EV and Alternative Fuels, Folashade Alao, said a newly developed tool helps the commission identify charging station gaps through an environment or equity lens, too.
In line with more charging stations, the commission aims to “accelerate” electric vehicle adoption in the area by addressing common barriers.
One commission member interjected to explain that ease is a common barrier. She said “until we make it as easy as swiping a card to charge,” a segment of the population won’t adopt the plug-in charge cars.
The plan also pushes for a boost in workforce development around the electric vehicle industry in Georgia. The ARC isn’t alone — in January 2024, Goodwill of North Georgia launched its own EV workforce development program aimed at training 200 people to work in the industry.
Goodwill’s program focused on charger maintenance, bolstering a new skilled trade the nonprofit compared to being a plumber or electrician. The ARC plan similarly mentions partnerships with community colleges and vocational schools to boost the trade.
The regional commission’s final goal is to align the plan with its ongoing climate planning work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Senior Managing Director of Transportation Planning John Orr said the new plan fits into the ARC’s “ongoing efforts to support a sustainable transportation system” in the region.
“But EVs are just one element of our strategy,” Orr said in a press release. “We must continue to design livable, walkable communities and invest in public transit, trails, and bike-ped infrastructure.”
