ALC-Highway Commission Review and Advisory Subcommittee

Bring the how a commissioner of you advisory sub committee to order Uh we're going to include without objection we're going to bring the Adam ET after the beginning of the agenda. See no objection we will begin with the federal national electric vehicle infrastructure formula program update. The rex view what will come forward and whoever you need there and introduce yourself and you're welcome to proceed. Rex finds that the Director chief engineer for Arkansas department transportation. Red makayla the Division engineer for transportation planning and policy with the Arkansas department transportation. You're welcome to proceed whoever wants to go first all right. Senator Johnson represented McNair and members of the subcommittee thank you for the opportunity to be here today and share with you the department's efforts are related to the national electric vehicle infrastructure or otherwise known as navy formula program. Our overall approach to this program has been to meet the federal requirements while maintaining a free market perspective in order to maximize the potential benefits for the state of Arkansas. To that end. R. dot has determined that we will not own operate or maintain ninety charging stations nor will we install any of them on our properties we do not intend to use state funds for the non federal match to this program. For the implementation of the program. And the charging station owner operators will be required to provide at least a twenty percent non federal match for the program. My presentation today will cover some basic information about electric vehicles an overview of the navy program a description of the Arkansas electric vehicle infrastructure deployment plan and the next steps in our process. I don't see any reason Asian package yup ratifying. I thank we may not have apologized what will get you a copy of the presentation that are sorry about that. All right so there are three categories of electric vehicles and Chargers hybrid vehicles have an engine in charge an electric motor rather than needing to be plugged in to charge. Plug in hybrids have an engine and an electric motor that can be charged with either a level one or level two charger depending on their design. Level one Chargers use a standard one hundred ten volt wall outlet of a provide about a five mile range for charging our. The level two Chargers use a two hundred eighty to two hundred forty volt outlet they're the most common type of charters that you'll see in a public location and they deliver about twenty five miles of range for charging our. Battery electric vehicles do not have an engine they have a battery and direct drive electric motors at the axles and they utilize the DC fast Chargers the DC fast charger is what's Navy plan is focused on implementing across the nation. They require at least a three phase four hundred volt commercial of power from electric utility company. They can deliver approximately one hundred to two hundred plus miles of range on a thirty minute charge in there primarily for long distance travel. The infrastructure investment and jobs act or measure include seven and a half billion dollars for alternative fuels infrastructure with two different components the first one is the five billion dollar navy formula program Arkansas scheduled to receive fifty four point one million dollars over the next five years from this program. The second component includes two and a half billion dollars of competitive grants fund to make competitive grant funding that is evenly split between Evey charging stations and other types of alternative fuels we anticipate that the competitive grants will be available in November of this year. The navy program requires the interstates and designated electric alternative fuel corridors have a publicly accessible DC fast charging station every fifteen skews me every fifty miles along the corridor. That is within one mile of an exit. The charging stations have to have at least four one hundred fifty kilowatt charging ports that can operate at the same time delivering six hundred kilowatts of power for our on demand. By comparison the average US home uses less than nine hundred kilowatts in a month. The station must have a combined charging system port which is a specific plug configuration that is common to most vehicles. As a result Tesla Chargers which user protect proprietary port are not eligible for this funding at this time. The navy program also requires that forty percent of the benefits be targeted toward disadvantaged and rural communities in the state. Currently there are a total of almost five hundred miles of interstates and designated electric vehicle corridors in Arkansas about sixty three percent of these of facilities passed through disadvantaged communities and about seventy percent of them passed through a rule community in Arkansas. Are not willing Gates with equity based and rule communities to better understand the names priorities and benefits as we move forward with developing the implementation of the program. We started working on the plan in late may we submitted our plan to the Joint office of the Federal Highway Administration and the department of energy on July twenty seventh. We've been informed that the Joint office has reviewed the point our plan they commented that it was very concise and easy to read they noted that we engaged in strong coordination and made great use of the graphics to explain the plan. Additionally they submitted our table of known risks and challenges to the Federal Highway Administration headquarters as a best practice example for other states. We anticipate final approval our of our plan by the Joint office in September of this year. Federal highway administration released a ninety day guidance back in June for use in developing the plan. A formal plan template was included in that guidance and the items that are shown in the slide OR what we're required to be addressed in the plan. The first step in our plan development process was performed the project management team which consists of staff from the Arkansas department transportation energy and environment and the Arkansas is clean cities coalition. This team meets weekly to coordinate on planned development. Next we are brought H. N. T. B. and national architecture and engineering firm that has worked with are not on a variety of projects in to provide assistance. A major component of our stakeholder coordination was the formation of the Arkansas navy electrification working group. The working group members assisted with strategic decisions and review drafts of the plan components. To engage with the general public we hosted a virtual public meeting on June twenty first there are eighty four participants that attended and after for presentation of project management team responding to questions that were posted by attendees. A wrecker or recording of the event has been posted on our navy website for public viewing along with fact sheets frequently asked questions and other resources. And we submitted to the Joint offices also in posted on that website. We also engage an initial coordination efforts with our neighboring state DOT's to understand where key gaps might be located along our borders because our neighboring states are planning similar competitor procurement processes we do not know exactly where charging stations will be located at this time coordination with our neighbors will continue throughout the navy formula program period. Our objective is to fully build out one hundred percent of the interstates and designated electric vehicle a court orders to navy standards first which is required by the guidance our strategy for accomplishing this is to spur investments in Evey charging stations through a competitive procurement program with potential owner operators. Once we are certified as fully built out the next phase will be to move to other routes of significance likely US and state routes with high traffic volumes. If funding remains after providing sufficient regional coverage are not will use feedback from on going public and stakeholder engagement to determine additional priorities. Ninety funds we awarded through a competitive procurement process to the report party owner operators our initial priority for eligible locations will be to fill the gaps in the charging network on the interstates and designated Evey alternative fuel corridors. Our double standards pass fail criteria based on the minimum compliance requirements from the navy program in a binding agreement as well as additional scored criteria to select finally awarded OWNEROPERATORS. Station owner operators will be required to provide at least twenty percent non federal match and once again are not as determined that we will not own operate or maintain ninety charging stations nor will we place any of them on our property. The blue dots on this map or existing navy compliant charging station stations that exist today the pink areas indicate a twenty five mile driving distance from each of the stations this map shows eleven gap segments. Of that are not Navy compliant at this time several of the gap segments are more than fifty miles in length and therefore likely need to electric vehicle charging stations to span that gap in the coverage and meet the minimum requirements. Locations directly along the border could ultimately be served by stations in our neighboring states one example of this would be the US for twelve court or that could be served by a charging station located in Oklahoma and eliminate the need for Arkansas to install one in this corridor. Next action process include development of the competitive procurement program publication of a request for proposals a review of those applications and making awards to the owner operators that are selected through the through that process and then the ongoing management of the program including development of the next annual plan the navy program requires the department to submit a plan each year. The timing on all of this remain uncertain until federal rules are finalized. we don't we're we're we anticipate those rules being finalized sometime this summer. We will have to incorporate those fun rules indoor competitive procurement program and it's our intention to release that program to coincide with the final rule making process. Based on information from the top ten electric vehicle charging station companies we're currently estimating an average cost of approximately one million dollars for charging station site. This would include utility site make ready upgrades hardware installation and everything needed to activate the eve you charging station. At one million dollars for navy site Arkansas will have sufficient funding in fiscal years twenty two and twenty three to fully build out approximately twenty three locations leaving a large amount of funding to build out other key routes of significance an additional Arkansas Evey charging station priorities. Thank you again for the opportunity to share this information with you today I'll be glad to respond to any questions that you might have. I have one. Right. The. How many private operators owner operators are there in the United States right now. In the United States and I'm afraid to not know the answer to that question Sir. This is is there are there any in Arkansas that you know there are there are some private owner operators in the state of Arkansas now chargepoint is one of the companies that that owns charging stations operates those usually the charging stations are in coordination with eggs other existing businesses such as Walmart or some of the Local corner stores with gas stations circle K. those types of facilities. Senator Chesterfield. Thank you Mr chairman good afternoon thank you for being here okay get your little we're getting a little report that your substantial report in writing so that I can prove that a little bit better. You have made a decision not to allow any of the property that belongs to are not to be used in this capacity could you tell me the reasoning why. A part of the reason behind that that some states are allowing of these to be located at their tourist information centre rest stops but we currently have or restriction on a collecting revenue at those sites in the charging stations will be charging people for access to that electricity so these are not rules that you will not collect funds or is it is not state law is it that is my understanding that a state law federal I'm sorry federal law. Because we because we use federal money for those develop those sites. So because we use federal dollars if somebody pulls into a rest up he or she cannot take advantage of the opportunity then to recharge the vehicle is that what you're saying that would be in violation of federal law well I believe it's yes that's correct yes ma'am. What were the were the primary reasons as well is we're we're not asking for exceptions the federal government because we would then be in competition with private entities and we would be charging or collecting revenue on state highway or federal highways and that would be direct competition with the gas station the other entities were who are trying to attract customers. And we made a decision and that's federal law that says you can't be in competition. I'm just trying to have not just seeing some people back there saying yes yes you're saying well no ma'am I come. Regulations prohibit collection room with. Interstate rest stops. The private sector on. California has electronic thank goodness pilot program that program. California state of California is paying for the record. Charge to. Okay okay thank you. I appreciate the comment of you can get two hundred miles of tell you need to have on a half hour charge yes I'm an electrical engineer I belong on blogpost at cetera it's the new wave of all actual engineering thought is how do you charge faster so when you show the chart up here that's got the for Chargers six hundred kilowatt. Those are going to be what's going to be there year after I mean every project as planned obsolescence tenant. But this is a new and emerging technology that's going to be dramatically different and I hold. The worst thinking ahead that. I I just don't see market place where people are going to drive two hundred miles and sat there for a half hour to recharge and then drive two hundred miles and set their other half hour if engineers don't get our act together and fix that where you can charging the time span of fake the feeling your car. You might have something here but my fear is that we're not thinking that through and especially if were involved in that at some level and saying we're going to have never year whatever the acronym is rules and and bylaws. It's gonna be a different charger quickly because they're just not going to find a market places so certain waits that long and the engineering world is fast and frantically designing new charging so this situations and systems because they're gonna need you know it's one thing to charge this eight hours we sleep all night. But if you had to have this all night and they had to be shut off there would be a way the the marketplace would have driven a charging of a phone in a five minute span instead of an eight hour charge and I think that's got to happen to get electric vehicle so I hope we're looking forward to the there may be a comment but we need to be aware of that. Senator English. Thank you thanks for the presentation I'm very interested in this first of all I have is kind ninety but where are you going to put these charging stations if they can't go on off on the highways. Is that in towns in just a like a gas station or something like that they can be hello they're gonna be along the interstate highways they just won't be on. Operative that are. Lotus is on where the people go to plugin well some of the locations from some of the companies that provide the service will team with like a circle K. A. or front of a Cutie one of Mrs yes ma'am so then I guess my other question is so for trucking companies. In in this has to be within a mile of the Interstate Blondie's trucking company things like I know North Little Rock or more than a mile away how how how do we get in the lands. All right you right now the the navy program doesn't speak directly to commercial vehicles if they're designed to use this type of DC fast charger they can use these locations if they're not then they will be able to. Okay I was the site Tesla can't. There there there are some in the private sector that are working to address that problem right now. Yes answer that question. Senator representative fight. As a federal government and spoken to you all about replacing lost revenue with the Eevee starting to be. Of on how they plan on replacing that revenue. Nassar. I I noticed today the the California is got some pretty aggressive of walls that are about to take place it appears in I would think the lost revenue has to be replaced or or highway system will start crumbling. You agree. Yes Sir. Thank you. Represented the rye. Thank you Mr chairman. You're just a little bit got a question for you. We say back in the end of two thousand nineteen. Gasoline was about two dollars a gallon no matter what that nineteen to twenty one cents was actually nineteen to twenty one cents and and now that gases three or three fifty and got off to four something is to say it averages four dollars a gallon. Well. You're not going to take in any more money for the roads to get fixed all four dollars a gallon and you would off two dollars down and I just wonder since probably people of cut back a little bit on their driving if that's affecting our taxes coming in for rose. We have not seen a it creates yet. Thank you this. Senator Hester. Thank you over here. some kind of piggybacking off of a a question for my colleagues but you when you said that we would put in like a circle K. or you know that those are gestation people expect to spend less than five minutes at it would seem to me that you'd prefer to put them and maybe a shopping center or place it has restaurants I mean it really seems like. Just what what we do to ensure that we're putting in places where people actually use them or they plan to spend time and so that's that's one of the departments taking the approach that we have as toward the free market relying on the individuals that operate in that space of the Kanemi and and understand what they need to do where they need to be located to be competitive but we're not we're not we're not dictating or selecting the specific locations that they can apply for okay can we say that yeah I think some of the criteria are if something goes wrong and it will right like if it's that's how things work right that they're gonna be up and going again within like twenty four hours I mean are we putting any restrictions or criteria on these people how how we can enforce that. The the final rules are are not out yet the guidance that we have at this point doesn't address the department's rules and enforcement to that degree there are requirements for these facilities to be publicly accessible twenty four seven. Yeah this something that clearly is getting one more discussion and what we can you talk about priority areas why are there any thoughts on like the non priority that I mean that we might gets totally different things are told expectations there do you have any thoughts on non priority areas well part of part of the approach that we're taking and again we don't have the final rules but we have to achieve that fully built out status that designation from the secretary transportation on the existing interstates and designated corridors once we have achieved that designation what we're hoping to be able to do is get some exceptions to the minimum requirements so that we don't have to necessarily have four one hundred fifty kilowatt charters out of sight we will cations that are relatively high risk to the market because of their location and the traffic volumes that exists there so in order for us to try to right size the stations for various locations across the state we feel like we need that flexibility we've we've made that comment in regard to the rules but we have again the final rules are now so we don't know where we stand at this point sounds good thank you. Representative flower. Thank you Mr chair just a couple of quick questions you so for the federal land where or for the federal rules that prohibit The State Parks and rest stops. Is would it prohibit for the private sector to For the private sector to find something like this that kind of infrastructure on these lands so they would benefit they would charge you wouldn't be the state charging. I'm the distinction there is between. Department property where we have use federal funds to either require the property bill the facilities there versus a state park that may or may not federal money I'm I'm not for him from the without works or what type restrictions they may have the it may very well be possible for the state parks to work with one of the charging station companies to install charters on their facilities could we find out yes that's okay and then the other thing is who who might be who would be eligible for the grant funds. any public entity is available for retirement to competitive grants that second phone yes ma'am so cities counties okay thank you. The Cavenaugh. Thank you Mr chair my question is a little different than I thought but on this program on this program coming from the federal government for the Seabees is there anything in the program that deals with the disposable of these batteries because we know that's going to be a long term problem I mean we have really it is a long term problem about how we're going to dispose of these these batteries as ever place does it address that in any manner no ma'am that at least not in the guidance that we received and not in the proposed rules as they were written okay but at Arkansas are we thinking about how that's going to be addressed. The. At this stage okay thank you. So it's about. Under interstate corridors right now about twenty five is that what I. The interstates and the designated Court or so US for twelve between the Oklahoma border and interstate forty nine of those routes yesterday thank. Thanks I mean it's pretty much filled in by the twenty five mile search here. During damp alone well a liner the requirement is for there to be a charging station at least every fifty miles in the corridor so what we're shown on that map was the twenty five mile driving distance which ends up showing where we have gaps of at least fifty miles more or more than twenty five miles one way or not yeah. Yes Sir so those are the areas highlighted in yellow. Or where we have a gap in the charging network at this time. And and and again those blue dots those locations those are navy compliant charging stations but that exist today so they they were installed by the private sector they they were not part of this program. Okay. Thank you any other questions. The nine. Britian has and will go on the next. Rep Roger. Issue you stay up there and thank you. Bring up bring up the matter up. anybody else you want to review all night yet. Hi in your packets you have for reports. that I bring to you today the exhibit B. C. one and C. two and the and I'll go through each one of those separately. And then just pause to allow you to ask questions. Exhibit B. which is toward the front a report is a quarterly report for the progress of which for highway construction projects of ten million dollars or more. I do not have a full report but will be happy to accept questions. You may have questions on. How to be. Seeing none the. Go on the item see if any members find anything we can always go back to it. September numerous questions. The I don't see. Okay item C. one and C. two in the middle of your packet or the July and August of twenty twenty two monthly updates for the AOC efficiency study recommendation rules for implementation. I'll highlight some of the more significant updates that we've made since last report. And in the in the opener for questions that's allowable you'll notice it means a rule if imitations just have a percent complete that for we've or have continued to progress on those. And they are underlined in your packets. So in your July report. A recommendation number four which is found on page seven of July report its recommendations for the department to implement a process to track all stakeholder enquiries. To read from receipt to resolution. As part of fulfilling this recommendation we have selected execute a contract with a consultant. Name government cure go of Q. eight. To provide software which can integrate into our website at that will provide us the ability to input tracking document the processing and response to customers or stakeholder increase. The estimated cost of the gov Q. a to provide the software and training is less the two thousand dollars. And this is the this software is used by four DOT. as well as the cities of Portland and and filled up. The next highlighted sections recommendation five which is found on page nine of your package. Recommendation five as for the park to implement efficiencies in procurement and purchasing. A previously our purchasers were required to physically manually audit every piece of paper that came through the office this was very inefficient and we have implemented additional auditing process within our accounting system. And this will make us much more efficient and in all writing those papers. I would also like to highlight that currently eighty five percent of our budget contracts are going out there are online dating process. And lastly on recommendation five we are updating our purchasing and disposal process procedures manual. To provide guidance and best practice or purchasers across the state to integrate updates. With our work or county system. And then of lastly on the July report is recommendation thirteen. On page twenty five. This is to approach staff capabilities to align with the current and future organizational needs and I'm proud to highlight the progress we've made in this area we have to fill three positions who are dedicated to expanding and enhancing our training programs publishing learning pass developing curriculum. For the online in classroom training and coordinating the leadership development program and maintenance training academy. We have had a hundred and twenty four newly hired employees participate in interloper training. We've had for three thousand four hundred fifty employees have received a new anti fraud a code of ethics training. Fifteen hundred employees have received additional works on safety training. Ten newly promoted supervisor has supervisors have been through our new supervisor on board training. Fifty supervisors have participated in a pilot leadership immersion training with the UALR leadership academy and sixteen additional supervisors haven't attended the leadership your L. R. leadership academy. Since they were making little progress in that area. They noted the main highlight for the July report I'll close and not take any questions. Members have any questions Richmond covered. Seeing. None all. Okay. Mr. Mr pay in and I may be totally on the wrong section or whatever of the report actually think I am I got a question I think on on out of the we're not there will be. Sark. Go ahead. Okay we'll move on to the August. A report. I have a couple I don't a lot of uh highlight here Melcher for recommendation six which is page eleven in your August report. You're recognized sixty to implement construction contractor performance measurements in order to fulfill this recommendation we've established a contract contractor performance evaluation committee. If you recall we have public comments In the previous we were getting ready for this that suggested we have representative from the contracting. community employed on this committee so we requested Dissociation general contractor of Arkansas in Arkansas as full Payton sociais Asian to recommend. Member for this committee and they have wrecker agency has recommended Mr all three of capital mid south. And the Arkansas as folk paper social agent recommended Mister Bremer Roddy dealt Arkansas bill passed for Markham so. And that committee is currently reviewing best practices of contract performance measures used by the DOT's. And then lastly on this report recommendation seven is to implement the project improve portfolio management frameworks for preconstruction construction and maintenance in order to complete a portion of recommendation seven we are requesting approval to proceed with a contract for computerized maintenance management system this contract is found in eggs D. at the back of your packet and is the next Gen only out is item on the agenda. So these are the main highlight flowers report and we have to take any questions. Senator Chesterfield. Thank you thank you Mr chair recommendation six was perhaps one of the more contentious Areas of concern as we were providing this year twenty five percent completion according to your own report when do you anticipate at least getting to fifty or sixty percent of of completion of this this guideline I don't have a data for number but we are moving very quickly they've done a lot of research to committed a lot of research on different deal teas and I believe they're settling on one so they have very quickly on this so we anticipate moving out so. You made will have a greater degree of completion we see again yes ma'am thank you so much Mister thank you. Richard Rudy so RN's initiatives question. Shoot me. Maybe I ask your question to my promote recommend a bio introduction here. so in Adam D. in your packet is introduction of a. Management system contract. A to accomplish got health study recommendation number seven are not plans to implement a modern maintenance management system. So for a two more effectively planned statewide maintenance activities funding in inventories. Prior to execution contracts of fifty thousand dollars or more to implement study recommendation department provided H. press. The opportunity. For review of this contract in may of twenty twenty one the department issued requests for proposal. For my church management software. These proposals are advertised on our website and course of your law additionally are not mailed out. The advertisement to listen national nationwide potential vendors. Eleven proposals were received and reviewed eleven vendor for later invited might demonstrations. In November of twenty twenty one following proposal evaluations the commission approved the department to begin negotiations with data transfers solutions for implementing view works out for. This web based software will allow staff to strech and managed service request and more efficiently plan assets equipment and labor for maintenance activities. On July twenty six of this year are not submitted the proposed contract with DTS to this committee for review. And on August first of this year are not published a notice for fourteen days for public comment regarding our intent to enter the contract with DTS for maintenance management system software. The notice was published on or not website and add. An inmate was in the democratic is that no comments been received today. The initial cost of the software implementation and training is one point six three million dollars the annual cost. We'll be under sixty thousand dollars for support maintenance and data hosting. And all right is excited to implement the DTS offered modernize our maintenance management and planning efforts. I would like to add or take note that this is the first contract of fifty thousand dollars or more related to implementation of the got House study all recommendations which got which are not is submitted to this committee for review our staff to communicate with the office of state procurement and to ensure we provide all the necessary information. in court for what other state agencies do but if the committee would like something else in the future we will be happy to provide. With that I'd be happy to questions. Senator Hester. Thank you so on the maintenance this may just be like a. Resurfacing or overlay top maintenance but is it include like pot holes. Areas for that and I'll I'll. Say one so I'm on the I'm I'm chairing our claims commission and every time we have plans and we have a a list of people is a. Are broken you know whatever by Carter broke you know all these different things because we hit we hit a pothole and I I totally get why we can't. You know pay for all those in the state right out but I'm empathetic to the to the users and to that but this is a system the software will help us identify these potholes and get him fixed yes quickly yes they will identify how we can put them into a a a system we can track them attractive like the time is taking for specific crew to take care of that that also helps us be more patient we could see were made we have witnesses on timely time to repair such that so yeah absolutely thank you and how do you identify currently where there are potholes in this system will be helpful but it's only as good as the information goes and how how do you identify where they're at well one is just of our employees driving to the jobs or public comments yeah I know there's like a one eight hundred numbers one important part of the one of our recommendations will also includes allow public to give us feedback and and get this information of regarding those cap type of issues okay thank you so much yes Sir. So all or part of the maintenance. Has been on the phone a district engineer so. Will this help. You and the central office C.. Have a have a part in that. Also absolutely is this will help us track and and see where we have issues where we need help were maybe specific district need more help the district you live and has more bridges in any other district and state and so they need a lot they need more help with repair and so that but this will help us see that will clearly. Thank you Senator Pitsch thank you Mr chairman of communicate communicate communicate I'm kind of on Senator Hester's bandwagon there but there are times where our law will not fix the road with an overlay insider because getting wind or whatever I'm using example in my area will there be communication devices in this manner this maintenance software or joke you public and I said there's a pothole on south forty fifth street and you don't plan to fix that because south forty fifth street is going to a different level of road would you be communicating the date and time to expect a fixed as well as why. There's data with it I will not be specifically in this program it will be in the other program the a government Q. eight that's usually where we get into I mean sure I think there's a level of. Of they understand it takes time they don't go to the head of the list with the citizen but when you have a legitimate reason engineering or otherwise to not be out there as soon as possible to fix that usually where we get the most unhappy customers if you will than happy said absolutely and I think it's some level of theirs or the ability to say. This project is on pause because or even a short description why. Where they can report them if that's going to be invaluable to soften some of the cost absolutely and with the government Q. a that's part of that is is tracking any input we're getting from the CRA is tracking who are we done about it who would communicated what we've done about with and that will help us track that to be sure that it that citizen the calls and with the pothole is at least being contacted of but or we take care of Apollo. Our feedback absolutely yes. This will be a lot better than you guys that just put the sign up process bump. Yes. I'm always like. Fix the bumper. So we can we can give you some feedback about the box and that's right that's right moved about sign fixed about right. All right thank you Sir is there any other questions from members. Seeing none will consider that reviews or any other business. The Committee saying none we are adjourned.