Cumbria is set to install up to 900 new EV charge points after receiving £1.4m in funding from the Department for Transport’s Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) pilot.
This funding, which is being topped up to by almost £500k from private charge point installers and operators, will allow the county to accelerate its commitment to provide better public charge point infrastructure.
The scheme will see up to 780, standard 5.5kW charge points installed within streetlights or new charging bollards on the public highway.
It will include some ‘destination chargers’ where limited parking bays would enable charging for multiple users.
The remaining 120 charge points, which will be 7kw, will mostly be in existing local authority owned car parks.
Cumbria has a county wide strategy to meet the needs of its 500,000 residents, with a third of them currently having no access to off-street charging.
The scheme will also benefit the 47 million people that visit the county each year.
Cllr Keith Little, Cumbria County Council’s Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport said, “It’s fantastic to play a part in driving forward Cumbria’s approach to EV charging infrastructure and I’m delighted that we are working alongside partners with the shared ambition of providing a charge point network that both works for the county as a whole and addresses the unique needs of our area.
“This funding will significantly expand the charge point network and help facilitate the mass uptake of EVs. There has often been the argument that this uptake must wait for the widespread expansion of charging infrastructure.
“However, acknowledging this ‘cart and horse’ conundrum, this project is about proving that to facilitate change we need a suitably expanding charge point network that paves the way for the future.”
