The Arizona Department of Transportation has announced it is seeking bids for private entities to build or upgrade electrical vehicle charging stations along interstate highways, according to a Monday news release.

ADOT said 21 charging stations are expected to be completed by the end of 2025. The agency hopes these stations will make it possible for electric vehicles to be a true alternative to gas vehicles.

The stations will be privately owned, according to ADOT, with federal funds covering 80% of construction costs. ADOT said that 0 state funds will be involved in the construction of these stations.

Funds for the charging stations will come from the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program, or NEVI, which is allocating $5 billion in funds nationwide through the U.S. Departments of Transportation and Energy and $76.5 million for Arizona.

Charging stations will be no more than 50 miles apart, located within a mile of an interchange, and will include at least four chargers that can charge an electric vehicle within 20-30 minutes.

ADOT said future plans will include expanding onto other highways besides interstates. For more information about the electric vehicle charging station network, readers can visit AZDOT.gov/EVPlan.

Earlier this month, Mesa officials announced the city had secured more than $11 million in federal funding for electric vehicle charging stations. Mesa is in the early stages of developing a communitywide electric vehicle adoption master plan.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: ADOT seeks bids to build 21 electric vehicle charging stations