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U.S. Department of Energy Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

Maps and Data

Find maps and charts showing transportation data and trends related to alternative fuels and vehicles.

U.S. Alternative Fueling Stations by Fuel Type

1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Electric* 188 194 310 486 490 558 693 873 830 671 588 465 442 430 465 541 3394 13392
Propane 3297 3297 3299 3299 4252 4255 5318 4153 3268 3403 3431 3966 3689 2995 2619 2371 2175 2468 2647 2597 2654
Methanol (M85) 43 50 82 88 95 106 91 51 3
LNG 72 71 66 46 44 44 36 62 58 40 37 35 38 36 39 45 59
Hydrogen 7 7 9 14 17 32 46 63 58 56 58
Biodiesel** 2 16 79 142 176 304 459 742 645 679 644 627 675
CNG 349 497 1042 1065 1419 1426 1268 1267 1217 1232 1166 1035 917 787 732 721 778 772 841 910 1107
E85 2 7 32 37 68 71 40 49 113 154 149 188 200 436 762 1208 1644 1928 2142 2442 2553
Source: Alternative Fuels Data Center (AFDC), either directly (www.afdc.energy.gov/fuels/stations_counts.html) or from historical Transportation Energy Data Books (www.osti.gov/bridge/basicsearch.jsp)
Notes: Data snapshots for each year are based on the federal fiscal year and taken as close to September 30th of the indicated year as possible.

*Electric charging units, or EVSE, are counted once for each outlet available, even when multiple outlets are present at a single location. Includes legacy chargers, but does not include residential electric charging infrastructure.
** Stations selling low-level biodiesel blends (less than B20) are included in the station listing only for the years 2005-2007. In totals by year, stations with multiple fuels are counted once for each fuel.

This chart shows the trend of U.S. alternative fueling stations by fuel type from 1992 to 2012. Propane stations were the most numerous until 2011, when they were surpassed by electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE), or charging units. The number of EVSE units increased dramatically in 2011 and 2012, following the 2010 introduction of plug-in electric vehicles by major automakers. The number of E85 stations has been increasing steadily since 2004, as the number of flex-fuel vehicles available from major manufacturers has increased. The number of CNG stations decreased between 1996 and 2006 (despite the increase in CNG sales during this time) largely because the average station size was increasing.