Eighteen new electric vehicle charging points have been installed in the Chichester District to encourage more people to use electric vehicles and to support existing electric vehicle drivers.
Having successfully bid for a £58,000 government grant from the Office for Low Emission Vehicles, Chichester District Council has purchased and installed new charging points in eight of the council’s car parks across the district.
The charging points are now installed and ready for use in:
- Bosham Lane car park, Bosham;
- Northern Crescent car park, East Wittering;
- North Street car park, Midhurst;
- East Pallant car park, Chichester;
- Northgate car park, Chichester;
- Avenue de Chartres car park, Chichester;
- Pound Street car park, Petworth; and
- East Street car park, Selsey.
Users can pay for the service and electricity, either through the InCharge app, or by paying with a card or tag from the service provider.
Cllr Penny Plant, Cabinet Member for the Environment and Chichester Contract Services at Chichester District Council: “As a council we are committed to improving air quality and making steps to tackle climate change. This project is one of many ways we are trying to make a difference.”
“If we want more people to use electric vehicles, we have to make it easier for them to charge their cars. We’ve thought carefully about where to locate the chargers and identified key locations where visitors will be encouraged to stop and explore, while their car charges, so that they spend time and money in the district.
“The majority of chargers have also been installed in car parks close to housing without driveways or garages, which may encourage more householders to purchase an electric vehicle.
“We’re very grateful for the grant we received from the Office for Low Emission Vehicles and for the support we received from the Energy Savings Trust in helping us to submit our bid.”
The council also uses electric cars for some of its own services, including two electric vehicles which are used by the parking service to carry out daily enforcement patrols. This is both environmentally friendly and offers significant savings over the lifetime of the vehicle.
More information about the electric vehicle charging points available in Chichester District Council car parks across the district, can be found at
www.chichester.gov.uk/electricparking
Anyone thinking of purchasing an electric vehicle can also currently access a grant of up to £3,500 from the Government if they purchase a new car. More information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/grants-for-plug-in-vehicles.