Maryland EV Charging Network Grows 5X Since 2014

In 2014, Lynn Parsons ran out of battery power in her electric Nissan Leaf and had to knock on a stranger's door in Potomac, Maryland, hoping for help. She got lucky—the homeowner said yes, though renovations meant she had to charge her car using a generator on the front porch.

Fast forward 12 years, and Parsons is still driving that same Leaf around Kensington. But now she barely worries about finding a charge.

Maryland has exploded from fewer than 300 charging stations in 2014 to nearly 1,700 today, with over 5,400 individual charging ports spread across the state. The median electric vehicle range has tripled during that time, and over 150,000 EVs now cruise Maryland roads.

"I'm impressed at how much public charging has grown and the more opportunities I have," Parsons said. She's not alone—Maryland now ranks 11th nationally with about 88 charging ports per 100,000 residents, just behind New York.

The growth supports Maryland's ambitious climate goals: getting 1.1 million electric vehicles on the road by 2030 and requiring all new passenger cars sold to be zero-emission by 2035. State transportation officials say the charging network is more robust than most people realize.

The Bright Side

Maryland's progress shows how quickly clean transportation infrastructure can scale when there's commitment behind it. What was once a white-knuckle adventure for early EV adopters like Parsons has become routine for hundreds of thousands of drivers.

The charging network includes both Level 2 chargers (adding about 25 miles of range per hour) at places like grocery stores and workplaces, plus DC Fast chargers along highways that deliver over 100 miles of range per hour. This means drivers can top up while shopping or grab a quick charge on road trips.

While challenges remain—some rural counties still have limited access, and certain zip codes have many more EVs than charging ports—the trajectory is clear. Montgomery County alone now has more charging ports than all of Western Maryland, Southern Maryland, and the Eastern Shore combined, showing where demand drives supply.

The transformation means everyday drivers can embrace electric vehicles without fear of being stranded, making clean transportation accessible to more Maryland families every year.