Wiltshire Council to boost electric vehicle charging infrastructure
The authority's been given ÂŁ480,000 of Government cash
Wiltshire Council's bringing in more staff to plan the growth of electric car charging infrastructure around the county.
It's being funded through ÂŁ480,000 from the Department of Transport over the next two year.
Five project officers will be tasked with mapping out where new charging points should go.
They'll also work on applications for further Government funding to pay for the actual points themselves to be installed.
The DfT is putting aside up to ÂŁ3.88 million for that work - focussed on areas where points are needed by the community but might not attract commercial charge points.
Cllr Caroline Thomas, Cabinet Member for Transport, said:
“To enable more people to use electric vehicles, we need an improved network of chargers here in Wiltshire. Usually, EV infrastructure providers look to provide chargers in areas that are most profitable for them, and that can leave out rural areas.
“Revenue funding is targeted on increasing our capacity to do more, so must be spent on officers rather than the chargers themselves. This new team will look to create a county-wide strategy and bring in providers that will install chargers into villages as well as towns, in areas where residents do not have access to off-street parking.
“Once the new team is in place, they will look to secure further LEVI funding of up to £3.88m to realise the EV Infrastructure Strategy and install more chargers throughout Wiltshire.
“Our Business Plan sets out our commitment to becoming carbon neutral as an organisation by 2030, along with a pledge to support the decarbonisation of transport in the county, and the creation of this new team, along with the 70 new charging points we have installed in our car parks, will help us on that journey.”