Dorset Council has begun a major project to install EV charge points at 23 of its car parks across the county.
This expansion to the existing charging network will see a combination of fast (22kW), rapid (50kW) and ultra-fast (150kW) charging units installed by Joju Charging, the latter allowing users to charge 100 miles in ten minutes.
Funding to install and manage the new charge points is coming from a mixture of sources, with the main bulk of the cost (77%) being met by Joju and their funding partners Mer.
The remaining costs are being funded by the council through a mixture of developer funding and the Department of Transport’s On-Street Residential Charging Scheme (ORCS).
Once this phase of installations is complete, Dorset Council will have more than 80 charging units in its sponsored network.
Also, the council has secured funding to improve charging infrastructure in more rural parts of the county and the next phase of work is expected to begin in the new year.
Cllr Ray Bryan, Dorset Council’s Portfolio Holder for Highways, Travel and Environment, said, “In rural counties like Dorset, car ownership is amongst the highest in the country.
“By increasing the provision of electric vehicle charging points, we hope to provide the essential infrastructure needed to encourage more car owners in Dorset to choose electric vehicles over petrol and diesel equivalents.”
Chas Warlow, Head of Sales for Joju Charging, added, “Joju is delighted to be working with Dorset Council once again, following the success of our partnership with the council and Mer Charging UK on the first phase of the council’s roll-out of EV charging infrastructure.”
