FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
City of Brighton Achieves Bronze Designation in Charging Smart Program
Drive Clean Colorado Celebrates Brighton’s Leadership as First Municipality in Program
Brighton, CO – September 2, 2025 – Drive Clean Colorado is proud to celebrate the City of Brighton’s achievement in earning a bronze designation in the Charging Smart program. The city is recognized for advancing policies that support electric vehicle (EV) adoption and charging infrastructure. Notably, Brighton was the first municipality to join the Charging Smart program in Colorado and is now among the first to receive designation in the western United States.
Charging Smart, led by the Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC) in partnership with Drive Clean Colorado and funded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Vehicle Technologies Office, provides no-cost technical assistance and a clear roadmap for communities to accelerate EV readiness. Brighton’s Bronze designation highlights its commitment to cleaner air, sustainable growth, and building a strong foundation for EV deployment.
To achieve Bronze status, the City of Brighton reviewed zoning requirements to eliminate unintentional barriers to EV charging development, adopted a streamlined EV charging permit process, and collaborated with the local utility to identify partnership opportunities. These actions make it easier, faster, and more affordable for residents, businesses, and nonprofits to install EV charging equipment and adopt EVs.
“Achieving the Bronze designation through the Charging Smart program is a proud moment for Brighton, and it’s the result of dedicated, collaborative work across our city,” said Traci McLean, Sustainability Coordinator for the City of Brighton. “Over the past year, I’ve worked closely with multiple departments to streamline EV charging installation and strengthen community engagement around clean transportation. This designation will help us to build momentum toward a more sustainable Brighton.”
“Drive Clean Colorado is proud to celebrate Brighton’s Bronze designation and its leadership as the first Colorado municipality to join the Charging Smart program,” said Jenna Wyatt, Program Manager at Drive Clean Colorado. “Brighton’s work demonstrates how local governments can take practical, impactful steps to make EV adoption more accessible, support residents and businesses, and build a cleaner future for their communities.”
“Brighton’s Charging Smart Bronze designation recognizes the city for taking forward-thinking action to increase access and reduce costs for transportation electrification. These efforts are making a real impact for residents and allowing more people to access the economic, environmental, and health benefits of EVs,” said Ed Gilliland, Senior Director at the Interstate Renewable Energy Council.
To learn more about the Charging Smart program and how communities can get involved, visit ChargingSmart.org or contact Jenna Wyatt for more information.
About Drive Clean Colorado, a Clean Cities and Communities Coalition
Drive Clean Colorado (DCC), a U.S. Department of Energy designated coalition in the Clean Cities and Communities partnership, is a non-profit organization that delivers a variety of programs to accelerate the equitable adoption of clean transportation with the vision of cleaner air and economic growth for Colorado. DCC runs projects such as the Watts@Work initiative for workplace charging, and hosts four ReCharge coaches for the Colorado Energy Office to provide grant coaching and EV awareness outreach. Learn more at DriveCleanColorado.org.
