A county is joining the nationwide move to put electric vehicles first by 2030 by pledging more than 6,000 chargers across its towns.
Suffolk County Council has confirmed a partnership with charge point operator Believ to install over 6,000 new electric vehicle (EV) charging stations across the county. This is in line with the Labour government’s recent pledge to assist more Brits in switching to EVs.
The project, which will cost £21.3 million, aims to help locals efficiently transition to electric vehicles, especially residents without off-street parking. The new initiative will see thousands of EV charging stations across residential streets and public car parks throughout the borough.
The impressive project will reflect the largest and most expansive EV charging rollout in a UK county. The partnership will build curbside chargers available for overnight charging and rapid charging units in public car parks, allowing residents to quickly top up their cars.
The funding for this new partnership has been granted from a £5.3 million bid to the Government Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) fund. While, Believ, has agreed to invest an additional £16 million.
The LEVI fund is part of a broader initiative to help local authorities build effective charging stations for Brits without off-street parking. So far, the Suffolk County Council is the first local authority in England to both award its LEVI main funding tender and sign a deal with a charge point operator.
The Suffolk Council hopes to provide its residents with 24/7 access to a public charge point within less than a 10-minute walk. Based on a survey last year, local residents suggested most of the locations for the new charging stations.
The EV charger rollout will also help the county stay on track with its Climate Emergency Plan, which hopes to significantly improve the county’s overall air quality. The installation of these new public chargers on residential streets is set to start this summer.
Now, EV owners can also take advantage of off-peak tariffs with a dedicated residential tariff offering discounted overnight rates. Meanwhile, public car parks will receive rapid charge points, allowing quicker charging options.
Suffolk County Council isn’t the first county to propose new charging station projects. Brighton and Hove City Council is in final negotiations to build more than 6,000 curbside chargers throughout the district if the £130m agreement is confirmed.
The deal, which a government grant and private investors will back, will be Britain’s biggest EV on-street charging project yet. This project hopes to incentivise other counties to do the same.
These new EV charging point projects come after the 2030 ban on diesel and petrol vehicles in the hope of reducing the UK’s carbon emissions.
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