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In addition to its commuter initiatives, Bishop Ranch business park has added a new feather to its thriving transportation cap: the East Bay's first electric vehicle fast charging hub.

The three-car charging station is located at Bishop Ranch 6 and takes less than 20 minutes to fully charge a car. One of the first EV hubs in the county, Bishop Ranch executives hope the station will continue to encourage workers to use alternative means of transportation.

"As EV cars become more popular, amenities such as an EV fast charging hub may soon become de rigueur for sustainability focused companies and real estate developers," a release stated.

Bishop Ranch's transportation program helps keep approximately 10,000 cars off the road daily and helps save 15 million gallons of gas each year. The program includes free shuttle connections to BART, provides free County Connection bus passes, commuter planning assistance, as well as carpool incentives and served as the model for Google's transit program.

"People who work at Bishop Ranch have many commuting options, and today commuting by electric vehicle just got a whole lot easier," said Ed Hagopian, executive vice president of Sunset Development Company, which owns the business park. "Installing Blink EV charging stations is another example of our forward-thinking business practices and our commitment to providing green tenant services in order to preserve natural resources for the future."

Although information on the number of electric vehicles at Bishop Ranch was not immediately available, officials believe the charging stations will soon be instrumental in the lives of employers and commuters. Bishop Ranch General Manager Alex Mehran Jr. said people have been spreading the word about the new chargers on local blogs and recently saw three cars plugged in at once.

"Workplace charging is quickly becoming one of the most important location for EV drivers to charge while away from home", said Greg Fioriti, chief revenue officer of ECOtality. "Bishop Ranch is a perfect host site in terms of location, and it is great to see large office campuses joining the EV Project and enabling greater driving freedom for EV drivers in the Bay Area."

Produced by ECOtality, the hub is able to charge four vehicles: two at Level three voltage for newer cars such as the new Tesla and Nissan Leaf, and two at Level two voltage for older vehicles that are not compatible with the Level three adapter. The charging station also features two interactive touch-screens, a 42-inch color display for media and messaging, as well as an internal energy meter for energy usage data evaluation.

The electric vehicle project is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy through a federal stimulus grant and made possible by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

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