District 214 adds more electric car charging stations

Northwest Suburban High School District 214 has joined the Workplace Charging Challenge and plans to add 10 more electric vehicle charging stations to its seven campuses by August 2015.

With the additional stations, District 214 will have 18 places for employees to charge their plug-in electric vehicles at work, officials said.

"Adding (electric vehicle) charging stations to our campuses will advance District 214 as a leader in environmental sustainability," said Ted Birren, the district's director of operations. "Our commuting staff and visitors who own (plug-in electric vehicles) can charge at work and reduce their carbon footprint. We are very excited to add this option to all buildings."

The addition is part of the U.S. Department of Energy's Workplace Charging Challenge, which began in January 2013 with the goal of increasing the number of American employers offering workplace charging by tenfold in the next five years.