I-GO Car Sharing, a non-profit initiative in Chicago, recently announced the new locations where the solar-powered electric vehicle charging stations will be installed.
The electric vehicle project is worth around $2.5 million and the company wants to add another 18 publicly-available solar charging stations to power its cars and 36 all-electric vehicles to its own fleet. When I-GO will be complete, it will have the largest electric vehicle fleet in the Midwest.
According to the company, the solar stations will be ready to use by the end of 2012 and are backed by grants from the Chicago Area Clean Cities Partnership, the Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation and the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO). The I-GO is one of the largest projects of this kind built in the Chicago area.
A solar charging station will have the dimensions of four parking spaces, being able to charge two electric vehicles. Each solar charging station will form a canopy fitted with 44 solar panels.
The company also said that the canopies will be capable of generating about 200,000 kilowatt-hours of clean energy per year. 350Green is the company that will install the solar canopies.
To see the charging stations located and planned in the Chicago area click here.
