Suffolk to get more than £7 million in funding for electric vehicle charging
Suffolk County Council has secured millions of pounds of funding to help develop electric vehicle charging across the county.
Suffolk County Council has secured millions of pounds of funding to help develop electric vehicle charging across the county.
The county council has been allocated the money after successful bids to the Government’s Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) fund, which supports local authorities to plan and deliver charging infrastructure for residents without off-street parking.
Suffolk residents without off-street parking will see £5.9 million to support EV charging, and a further £1.4 million will be used to develop the county’s existing EV charging network in community locations.
Homes without a driveway face challenges when it comes to charging an EV - in some cases it is just not possible, and it is unsafe and hazardous to run cables across pavements. Along with inconvenient access to public charging, these are common reasons that people give for not choosing an EV.
The council say the funding will start to provide solutions to some of these issues, with opportunities to develop things like kerbside charging points and community charging hubs.
Suffolk residents are invited to ‘nominate’ their street for consideration for on-street charging points, using this online form. Although not every road may be suitable, suggestions from residents will help indicate where there is demand for charging points.
Councillor Richard Rout, Suffolk County Council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Environment, said:
“The recent EV:Ready Report, which the county council commissioned on behalf of all local authorities in Suffolk, suggests a need for 2,000 standard chargers and 40 to 60 rapid charging stations in Suffolk by 2030, to meet the demand of the EV transition.
“The LEVI funding will enable the council to play its part in moving Suffolk closer to those numbers, building on all our EV achievements so far – for example, the county council has been working on the county’s EV charging infrastructure since 2018 when we launched the Plug In Suffolk project.
Technology and Decarbonisation Minister Anthony Browne, said:
“This Government has a plan to help speed up the installation of EV chargepoints, which we’re getting on and delivering.
“This dedicated funding to local councils is part of our plan to ensure people can switch from a petrol or diesel car to an EV when they choose to do so.”
“Both the Strategy and the successful funding bids are an indication of the county council’s continuing commitment to encouraging EV use and our drive to net zero by 2030.”