2022 Powering Safe Communities Program Awards Over $170,000 for Electric Vehicle Charging and Public Safety Projects Across Northern Illinois
ComEd today joined the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus (MMC) to announce the winners of grants to fund community infrastructure projects that promote public safety and access to clean transportation. As part of the annual Powering Safe Communities program, ComEd and MMC have awarded 21 community grants totaling $171,000 to help launch community-driven projects across the region, from innovative pedestrian safety technology to clean transportation projects that support the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) and are designed to reduce carbon emissions and improve community resiliency.
“ComEd is proud to partner with the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus to spearhead investment in EV charging infrastructure, public safety and clean transportation projects across the region,” said Gil C. Quiniones, CEO of ComEd. “This year’s program fulfills our commitment to helping cities and towns across ComEd’s service territory achieve the vision of the Illinois Climate & Equitable Jobs Act and adopt new technology that will accelerate electrification, improve air quality and make our communities cleaner and safer for the future.”
The 2022 Powering Safe Communities grants mark the eighth year of the program, which has awarded 157 grants totaling $1.7 million to communities across northern Illinois. As a testament to growing interest in electric vehicles, the program in recent years has helped deliver $230,000 for clean transportation and EV charging projects.
"Through the Powering Safe Communities grants program, we are thrilled to be cutting carbon emissions and providing northern Illinois communities the infrastructure needed for climate progress," said Mayor Kevin Burns of Geneva, and Environment Committee Chairman of the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus. "Electric vehicles and charging stations have significant emission benefits over conventional vehicles. By working with ComEd to provide grant funding to communities and through the EV Readiness partnership, we are clearing the way to electrify our cities throughout the metropolitan region and beyond."
The grant announcement was made at the ribbon-cutting of a new EV charging station in the City of DeKalb, which was made possible by a 2021 ComEd Powering Safe Communities grant. Installation of the new charging station at Van Buer Plaza was completed in April 2022. In the short time the charging station has been open, it has connected 100 charging customers, creating nearly 600 kg in greenhouse gas savings.
“The electric vehicle charger provided by the ComEd and Metropolitan Mayors Caucus Powering Safe Communities program has been a tremendous addition to downtown DeKalb,” said DeKalb Mayor Cohen Barnes. “EV owners can visit our downtown’s shops and restaurants while charging up, supporting our local economy and environmental sustainability.”
The 21 ComEd Powering Safe Communities Program grant recipients for 2022 are:
City of Joliet: This grant will support the purchase and installation of two EV charging stations at the commuter parking lot adjacent to Gateway Center Train Station and Slammers Stadium – two key locations in the City’s new EV Charging Station Program designed to improve health outcomes and reduce reliance on fossil fuels.
City of Lake Forest: This project will help support the purchase, installation and maintenance costs for two new EV charging stations in the City’s Forest Avenue parking lot, located adjacent to historic Market Square in the heart of the City's Central Business District.
City of Rockford: The grant will support the purchase and installation of a dual-port level 2 EV charging station in downtown Rockford, allowing two cars to charge at one time. This would be the City's first step in advancing EV charging infrastructure and will be located in a high utilization area for the Rockford Region.
Fox Lake Police Department: The grant will support the purchase and maintenance costs for two new License Plate Reader cameras, which will be used to monitor and reduce traffic along busy thoroughfares, and to protect public safety in the event of traffic infractions.
Maple Park Police Department: This grant will support the purchase of two solar powered portable speed signs to enhance the village's neighborhood traffic calming program. The signs will warn drivers when they exceed the speed limit and will log traffic data for future traffic calming decisions, including increased enforcement, engineering changes and making village roads safer for vehicles and residents.
Village of Buffalo Grove: The Village of Buffalo Grove will install three Level 2 charging stations at Fire Stations 26 and 27. The grant will be used to remove barriers to EV usage for Fire Department employees and will support the cost of installation for the Village Fire Department.
Village of Bull Valley: This grant will help the Village of Bull Valley to outfit 30 miles of winding rural roads with LED-lighted stop signs and additional pieces of equipment to improve driver compliance with stop signs and speed limits, calm traffic and increase overall driver and pedestrian safety when the roads are dark.
Village of Burnham: The grant will be used to support the purchase and installation of new radar speed monitor signs in traffic areas. These new solar powered signs will offer a sustainable method for alleviating traffic and improving roadway and pedestrian safety.
Village of Elburn: The grant will support the purchase and installation of one EV charging station available for public charging use, located at North 1st Street and East North Street.
Village of Franklin Park: The grant will be used to purchase and install four new EV charging stations. Two charging stations will be designated to serve municipal owned electric vehicles and the village’s public works facility and the other two charging stations can be used by the public at the Village Hall.
Village of Forest Park: The grant will support the installation of two EV charging stations located at the Constitution Court parking lot, serving patrons and employees along Madison Street, the Village's main street.
Village of Fox River Grove: The grant will be used to support driver safety initiatives through the purchase of new solar-powered radar signs to deter speeding, and road flares used to notify drivers in the event of a safety hazard.
Village of Lincolnwood: The grant will support the purchase and installation of a new EV charging station located in the Morse Avenue parking lot, serving patrons of Proesel Park and the Village Hall Campus.
Village of Lombard: The grant will be used to support installation of two new EV charging located within the central business district—marking the first public charging stations set to arrive to the Village.
Village of McCook: The grant will help support the addition of solar-powered radar signs, equipped with data collection technology, to help reduce high-speed motor traffic that poses a danger to other drivers and pedestrians. This project will enhance the Village’s enforcement efforts and protect community safety near community playgrounds and parks, and in the central business district.
Village of Niles: The grant will cover the costs of a new EV charging station and designation parking station on Church Street.
Village of Richmond: The grant will be used to install Richmond's first electric vehicle charging station in the downtown area, promoting the use of green transportation.
Village of Riverside: The grant will be used to support construction of two new EV charging stations located along East Burlington Street and Bloomingbank Road. Located near the train station and Riverside’s Central Business District, this project seeks to encourage green transportation by offering charging options to commuters and visitors.
Village of Shabbona: The grant will be used to support the addition of new speed radar signs to help alert traffic near schools, which see a high volume of tractor trailers due to the predominance of agriculture activity in the area.
Village of Wheeling: This grant will support the purchase of a new dual port charging station located at Wheeling Village Hall, serving employees as well as visitors free of charge. This new charging station will help Wheeling deliver the network of charging pace with growing demand for EVs, building on existing charging stations currently located at the local train station.
Willowbrook Police Department: The grant will help support the purchase of a new License Plate Reader Camera. This technology will help police officers monitor speeding in high-risk areas.
“In Rockford, we are focused on sustainability and stand in support of developing needed transportation alternatives for our region,” said Rockford Mayor Tom McNamara. “That’s why we’re thrilled to receive this grant for EV charging infrastructure that will help to advance our community’s future readiness.”
“In the Village of Burnham, we are very concerned with safe passage for our students in school zones and residents overall,” said Burnham Mayor Robert Polk. “We sincerely appreciate ComEd for assisting us with enhancing safety in our community through this grant that will help us to install the new solar powered radar speed monitor signs.”
The new funding to support clean transportation builds on ComEd’s ongoing efforts to accelerate EV adoption for the region. Last month, ComEd announced its Beneficial Electrification program, which, pending approval by the Illinois Commerce Commission, would provide $100 million annually to help communities promote equitable access to EVs, lower costs of EV adoption for customers and communities, and accelerate the buildout of a large network of EV charging infrastructure serving the region.
In May, ComEd announced a $225,000 investment to support the launch of the EV Ready Program – a joint initiative with the Metro Mayors Caucus aimed at reducing barriers to EV technology by helping communities to create policy and programs that support safe and equitable integration across the region.
These and other EV capacity building efforts by ComEd will support the goals of the recently enacted clean energy law in Illinois, the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act, which calls for putting 1 million EVs on the road by 2030. For residential customers who want to learn more about transitioning to EVs, ComEd offers an EV toolkit.
For more information on the Powering Safe Communities program, visit http://mayorscaucus.org/initiatives/environment/psc/.
ComEd is a unit of Chicago-based Exelon Corporation (NASDAQ: EXC), a Fortune 200 energy company with approximately 10 million electricity and natural gas customers – the largest number of customers in the U.S. ComEd powers the lives of more than 4 million customers across northern Illinois, or 70 percent of the state’s population. For more information visit ComEd.com and connect with the company on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
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