A permanent downtown Portland storefront to showcase electric vehicles and charging equipment is expected to open in April 2017.
Executive director of Drive Oregon Jeff Allen said the showroom is part of the organization’s goal to make people more aware of electric vehicles and help ease the transition to an electrified transportation system.
Allen made the comments during a panel discussion on transportation trends at the GoGreen sustainability and business conference in Portland on Wednesday.
Electric vehicles represent only 1.5% of car sales in Oregon, but the sector is expected to see strong growth as vehicle costs decrease and charging infrastructure becomes more common in urban areas.
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The showroom will be located in a currently empty storefront at the World Trade Center office complex on S.W. Salmon Street.
Drive Oregon, an advocacy group for electric mobility, received nearly $1 million from the U.S. Department of Energy in August to launch a marketing campaign to promote the benefits of electric vehicles.
The showroom will display all kinds of brands of electric cars as well as charging products. People will be able to test drive the different brands and even rent vehicles for a few days.
