ARPA

ontrary to the general notion of unequal access to public charging stations across different income groups, we found that the disparity was minimal. Assuming a full fleet of EVs and the current level of charging infrastructure, the success rate for all income groups is low but similar using 2035 trip-level data.

The study’s findings have two key implications for future federal aid programs. First, many local governments allocated ARPA funds in alignment with the policy’s primary goals—responding to the economic and health crises. This suggests that maintaining flexibility in future federal aid programs would enable local governments to tailor spending to their unique needs. Second, ARPA funds were allocated to more distressed local governments, demonstrating a potential model for future federal aid programs to ensure resources reach areas with the greatest need.