Edinburgh City Council has given the green light for a plan to build 66 on-street EV charging points in 14 hubs across the city by 2020.
The roll-out is the first phase of the Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Business Case (PDF) which was initially given the go-ahead by the council's Transport and Environment Committee in October. The plan would eventually see 211 on-street charging points by 2023 at a cost of £3.3m. As well as clearing city air from diesel and petrol fumes, the business case forecasts carbon savings of 7,715 tonnes and savings in Nitrogen Dioxide of over 14 tonnes.
Funding of £2.2 million for the first tranche of EV chargers up to 2020 was provided through Transport Scotland’s Switched on Towns and Cities Fund. Transport Scotland has made an additional £0.5m available to the Council for further charging points which could result in additional charging points being able to be installed.
The Scottish government wants to phase out new petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2032.
A combination of rapid, fast and slow chargers will be placed strategically around Edinburgh, with project managers liaising with parking and planning departments, along with Distribution Network Operator Scottish Power Energy Networks, to ensure a spread of infrastructure serving residents across the city. Locations have also been selected to complement existing off-street charging sites.
The Council is aiming to ensure charging equipment is located on roads rather than pavements to reduce street clutter and near, but not adjacent to, residential properties, to allow residents to park outside their homes. An enforcement policy is currently under development, to ensure electric vehicle bays, which will operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, are not used for unlimited parking and are reserved for electric vehicles.
Prior to the installation phase, which is expected to last from January to December 2020, a new Project Board will be established, supported by the Electric Vehicle Working Group, which will meet regularly to oversee implementation, providing robust governance of the plan.
Transport and Environment Convener, Councillor Lesley Macinnes, said: “We’ve seen an exponential rise in the popularity of electric vehicles over the last few years, and we want to see this continue. Encouraging drivers to choose environmentally friendly modes of transport over diesel or petrol cars will have a real impact on air quality so it’s essential that we provide the infrastructure to allow this.”