Seattle City Council’s Sustainability, City Light & Arts and Culture Committee voted 3-0 Jan. 17 to recommend adoption of Resolution 32160, which would adopt Seattle City Light’s updated Transportation Electrification Strategic Investment Plan (TSIIP) and guide the utility’s electrification infrastructure and investment priorities.

The plan directs City Light to expand charging infrastructure, prioritize investments in overburdened communities, and coordinate grid upgrades and rates to manage growing electric loads as more vehicles electrify. Committee members said they expect City Light to return with implementation details and maps showing where current adoption and future charging needs are concentrated.

City Light staff told the committee the plan updates work begun in 2021 and reflects four years of community outreach, pilot programs and partnerships with transit and port agencies. “We are committed to investing in Puget Sound’s transportation system to shift toward a cleaner, healthier and more equitable environment,” Angela Song, City Light transportation electrification portfolio manager, said during the presentation. David Logsdon, director of electrification and strategic technologies, said the utility’s service territory is seeing rapid electric-vehicle adoption and that a carbon-neutral grid multiplies the climate benefit of vehicle electrification.

The presentation summarized recent accomplishments and near-term needs: City Light said it currently has just under 2,000 chargers in its service territory and is projecting a need for roughly 11,800 chargers by 2030. Staff estimated one in four new vehicles sold in King County is already electric and said EV registrations in the territory are growing at about a 33% compound annual growth rate; by 2030 City Light projects more than 280,000 electric vehicles in its service area. The utility also reported that its 2024 public chargers dispensed more than 1,000,000 kilowatt-hours, which staff said is roughly equivalent to 3 million miles of driving.

Public commenters and community liaisons emphasized equity, workforce development and multilingual outreach. Yasmeen Abraham of Campbell Energy Group said the work should “make clean energy and transportation electrification accessible and equitable” for communities historically underserved by infrastructure investments. Deepa Sivarajan, local policy manager at Climate Solutions, urged the committee to adopt the plan and highlighted gaps for medium- and heavy-duty vehicle charging and charging access for people without home parking.

Committee members asked staff for maps and data showing where EV adoption is concentrated and how future charger needs break down geographically. Councilmember Sara R. Saka asked for zip-code-level maps and suggested an overlay with council districts; City Light agreed to provide maps showing current adoption and projected charger needs. Councilmembers also questioned how the plan will accommodate evolving technologies such as battery swapping and how levy and state funding would be used to accelerate deployment.

The committee took a formal motion to recommend adoption of Resolution 32160. Chair Rink moved the recommendation and Councilmember Saka seconded. The clerk called the roll: Councilmember Moore — Aye; Councilmember Strauss — Yes; Chair Rink — Yes. The motion carried, 3-0. The committee’s recommendation will be transmitted to the full City Council meeting on Jan. 28 for final action.

City Light staff said they will continue annual reporting to council on plan implementation, coordinate with Seattle Department of Transportation and other partners on levy-funded public chargers, and follow up with the committee on requested GIS maps and status updates for site-specific projects that have encountered delays, including the Morgan Junction location.

Why it matters: Transportation electrification is central to Seattle’s greenhouse-gas reduction strategy because the transportation sector accounts for a dominant share of local emissions. The plan ties infrastructure investments to targeted community engagement and workforce development and relies on local and state policies and funding streams to scale charging infrastructure and grid capacity.

Implementation details and next steps include the committee’s request for GIS maps showing current EV adoption and projected charger needs by ZIP code and council district, continued emphasis on equitable incentives for multifamily and overburdened communities, and annual progress reports from City Light to the council.