Office of Campus Sustainability

Three electric vehicle charging stations are now up and running around Bowling Green State University’s campus.

The BGSU charging stations are located at (click for directions):

• Parking Lot 8 (behind the Falcon Heights residence hall, on the corner of East Merry and Thurstin Street)

• Parking Lot E (next to the BGSU Heat Plant and railroad tracks, across the street from Bowen-Thompson Student Union on Thurstin Street)

• Parking Lot 20 (just south of the BGSU Welcome Center)

By providing these three charging stations on campus, in addition to the three stations in downtown BG, BGSU is supporting the electric vehicle (EV) market. Having six available locations in BG to charge an EV will hopefully attract more to the area.

“If we want to encourage a green revolution, we need to give people easy ways to reduce their carbon footprint,” said Tony Palumbo, director of the BGSU Electric Vehicle Institute. “By strategically placing charging stations throughout campus for easy, free access to the entire Bowling Green community, we are providing ‘opportunity charging’ so people can charge their cars while they conduct other University or community business.”

Parking is reserved for drivers who are actively charging their electric vehicles. No special permits are required to park and charge regardless of the parking lot. Drivers only need to pay for the meter ($1.00 for one hour, for a max of up to two hours). Parking space/meter is enforced 24/7 (including weekends and holidays).

Darlene Petkwitz charges her electric car.

Darlene Petkwitz, a certified public accountant in Bowling Green, just purchased a Think North America electric car last Friday. “It’s designed to be an urban car for short commutes, so it’s been great for zipping around the community,” she said.

Petkwitz loves the convenience of new charging stations around BGSU. “I not only have meetings on campus, but also enjoy events at the Stroh Center. I look forward to plugging in my car at the station by the Visitor’s Center, enjoying a great game, and then coming out to my car being fully charged.”

The stations were paid for through a grant from Clean Fuels Ohio and the U.S. Department of Energy; the BGSU Student Initiative Green Fund matched the amount of the grant, providing enough funding for the stations.