Oakton campus adds electric vehicle charging stations

Drivers of electric vehicles are now able to charge their cars at the dual charging station installed June 21 at Oakton Community College's Des Plaines campus, 1600 E. Golf Road, Lot D, near the Margaret Burke Lee Science and Health Careers Center.

Oakton's charging station works with the use of a ChargePoint account. ChargePoint operates more than 30,000 electric vehicle chargers in the U.S.

David Arieti, an Oakton biology instructor who drives a Nissan LEAF, was the first user of the charging station.

"When I found out that Oakton was installing a charging station, I was ecstatic," he said. "With electric cars that can get over 200 miles per charge on the horizon, I think the college will eventually need to put in more charging stations."

Oakton Manager of Systems Administration and Operations Dan Ridolfi said he bought an electric vehicle because of Oakton's station.

"I was in the market for a new car and wanted to get a vehicle that could more efficiently cover my 92-mile round trip daily commute," he said. "I ended up buying a Chevrolet Volt, which was rated 53 miles on a full charge. During the first week of operation of the stations, I haven't had to use a drop of gas."

"The addition of this ChargePoint station is just one of the many ways Oakton is reducing its impact on the environment, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by supporting sustainable transportation for students, staff, faculty and the community," said Oakton Sustainability Specialist Debra Kutska.

For more information about ChargePoint, visit www.chargepoint.com or call (888) 758-4389.