The Texas Department of Transportation said on Oct. 15, 2026 that it has awarded $226 million in federal National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Phase II funds for 321 electric vehicle charging stations. By TxDOT's count, 264 of those stations are in metropolitan planning organization (MPO) areas and the other 57 are in county seats.
The same release gave an update on the state's first round of NEVI funding. As of Oct. 15, 22 Phase I stations were open. Five more are expected to open by the end of 2026, and 30 more are planned for 2027.
The Phase II money is an award. It does not mean 321 new stations are operating. TxDOT's release gives no construction schedule for the Phase II sites and does not name the companies that received the awards.
The numbers, side by side
TxDOT's own documents use three sets of figures across the life of the program:
- Phase I (begun 2023): $53 million for 65 sites, according to TxDOT's summary of the April 2026 Texas Transportation Commission meeting. At that meeting's date, 15 Phase I stations were completed and open.
- Phase II as authorized (April 2026): The commission voted to authorize Phase II with "approximately $250 million" in grants for 147 charging stations, using Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act funds.
- Phase II as awarded (Oct. 15, 2026): $226 million for 321 stations, split into 264 in MPO areas and 57 in county seats.
The gap is large. Between April and October the dollar figure fell by about $24 million, and the station count more than doubled, from 147 to 321. Divide each total by its station count and you get very different averages. The April authorization comes to roughly $1.7 million per station. The October award comes to roughly $704,000 per station. Phase I's $53 million across 65 sites comes to about $815,000 per site. These are ChargerFeed's calculations, not TxDOT's. Per-site costs on real projects vary with location, utility work and station size.
The TxDOT pages ChargerFeed reviewed do not explain how the 147-station authorization became a 321-station award. The figures could reflect a change in how stations were counted, a different mix of site types, more applicants than expected, or something else. TxDOT has not said, so ChargerFeed is not guessing. Readers who track the program closely may want to ask TxDOT directly, or wait for the award list if one is published.
Where Phase I stands
The Phase I figures can be checked against each other. In April, 15 stations were open. By Oct. 15, 22 were open, so seven more opened over roughly six months. TxDOT expects five more by year-end, which would make 27, and another 30 in 2027.
Those planned and scheduled numbers add up to 57 stations, while the April summary listed 65 Phase I sites. The October release does not say whether the other sites are on a longer timeline, were dropped, or are counted differently. Treat the 57 figure as TxDOT's current schedule, not as a final total for Phase I.
The October release also described a field tour. Michael Chamberlain, whom TxDOT identifies as its Data Management Director, traveled more than 2,000 miles across Texas to inspect newly opened stations in Wichita Falls, Mount Pleasant, Van, Selma, Natalia, Encinal, Three Rivers and Kerrville. He also visited stations under construction in Corsicana and Mission.
Why Texas says it is expanding
TxDOT tied the expansion to demand for charging. The department said it reported 456,667 electric vehicles registered in Texas in February, and that the number has since climbed to 532,282, as of its Oct. 15 release. By ChargerFeed's calculation that is an increase of 75,615 vehicles, about 16.6%, over roughly eight months. TxDOT did not say whether the figures cover only battery-electric vehicles or also include plug-in hybrids.
The wider Texas charging picture
EVwire's Oct. 19 coverage of the award mentioned two private projects in the state. EVwire did not describe either as part of the NEVI program. It reported that Electric Son opened a Tesla Supercharger in Houston in September, and that the company's founder believes it is the first independently owned Supercharger in the city. It also reported that Google, Nevoya and the Center for Green Market Activation are deploying 25 electric semi trucks on the Houston-Dallas freight corridor, part of a 63-truck project.
Both examples show that charging is also being built outside the federal formula program, according to EVwire's reporting. That matters for anyone mapping Texas coverage, because NEVI stations will be only one part of what drivers and fleets can use.
Federal background
NEVI is administered through the Federal Highway Administration. TxDOT's April summary describes the Texas program as funded with Federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act money. FHWA's NEVI page, last updated Feb. 5, 2026, links to the NEVI Formula Program interim final guidance dated Aug. 11, 2025, a related Federal Register notice, the EV Charging Minimum Standards Final Rule, and a status-of-funds document dated Feb. 6, 2025. The TxDOT announcement does not say which version of the federal guidance governed the Phase II selections.
What It Means for Drivers
Today: As of Oct. 15, 2026, TxDOT counts 22 Phase I NEVI stations open. The stations TxDOT's Data Management Director inspected on his tour include sites in Wichita Falls, Mount Pleasant, Van, Selma, Natalia, Encinal, Three Rivers and Kerrville. The Corsicana and Mission sites were under construction at the time of the release.
By the end of 2026: TxDOT expects five more Phase I stations to open.
In 2027: TxDOT plans for another 30 Phase I stations to open.
Phase II: The 321 stations are funded, not built. Most of them, 264, are in metropolitan planning areas, which suggests more in-town and suburban charging. The other 57 are in county seats, which may help drivers in rural parts of the state. TxDOT has not published opening dates for Phase II sites in the material reviewed. Drivers should not plan trips around a Phase II location until it shows up as open in a charging app or on the operator's network. TxDOT says existing and planned charging locations can be tracked through its Statewide Planning Map.
Pricing: TxDOT's announcement gives no charging prices for NEVI stations. Check the posted rate at the charger or in the operator's app before you plug in.
