Expanding an Electric Vehicle Charging Station in Somerset
The Somerset Electric Vehicle Charging Station is part of the Alternative Fuel Corridors in Pennsylvania.
- The site will serve as a national hub for testing emerging transportation and autonomous vehicle technologies.
- It will also provide a state-of-the-art training facility for Pennsylvania’s 54,000 first responders.
Construction on the PennSTART facility has begun in Mount Pleasant to not only serve local users but also to make southwestern Pennsylvania a national hub for the development of emerging artificial intelligence technology and economic opportunities.
The facility will help advance transportation technology and training, such as connected vehicles, traffic management and autonomous technologies. It will not only serve as a training facility for Pennsylvania’s 54,000 first responders, but as a national hub for emerging technology and economic opportunity, according to a press release.
What is PennSTART? It is a closed-loop testing facility designed to accelerate innovation in emerging transportation technology.
“As technologies change, the ways that drivers and first responders interact with transportation infrastructure change as well,” said PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll in a press release. “PennSTART will be the testing ground for next-gen innovations designed to make our roads safer and more connected.”
PennSTART will serve entities testing and training with connected and automated vehicles and autonomous technologies; commercial and transit vehicles; off-road and aerial vehicles; field robotics; and traffic incident management, tolling, Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) and traffic signals. Additionally, the RIDC Westmoreland site will offer training outside of the classroom at a state-of-the-art facility for Pennsylvania’s 54,000 first responders.
“Having a facility like PennSTART that provides real-world incident management training for first responders is game-changing,” said PA Turnpike CEO Mark Compton. “We are excited to be able to move beyond the classroom to effectively prepare police, fire, medical, and towing personnel for the dangers they encounter during an incident – like distracted or aggressive drivers. Through collaboration with all agencies, we will have successful incident management – and in return, enhanced safety and improved emergency response for our first responders and traveling public.”
The first phase of the PennSTART facility will include a high-speed test track and a multi-purpose area for customized use. Future phases of the project will include signalized and unsignalized intersections and urban and rural environment approximations to maximize test conditions.
What is an autonomous vehicle (AV)?
An autonomous vehicle is a self-driving car that uses sensors such as cameras, radar and lidar, and AI to operate without human input. It doesn’t need a human being to handle perception, navigation and control to drive the AV safely.
AVs range from partially automated (Level 2) to fully autonomous (Level 5), with systems taking over more functions as the level increases. The aim is to remove the need for a human driver entirely for various vehicle types like cars, buses and trucks.
“PennSTART reflects many of the Office of Transformation and Opportunity’s core values – it’s collaborative, forward-looking and will make Pennsylvania more competitive in the growing field of autonomous vehicles,” said Chief Transformation Officer Ben Kirshner in a press release. “My team is proud to support PennSTART through our PA Permit Fast Track program.”
The total investment from all sources in the first phase of the project is $25 million. It includes funding from the Regional Industrial Development Corporation (RIDC), PennDOT, PA Turnpike, the Hillman Foundation and Pennsylvania’s Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP).
Planning began after the concept was recommended in the Forefront Report sponsored by RIDC and the Greater Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce in 2021 and is now breaking ground thanks to Gov. Josh Shapiro’s Office of Transformation and Opportunity’s (OTO) Fast Track program, which is overseeing the project’s permitting.
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