Northumberland County Council has passed a motion to add 36 public electric vehicle charging points at 26 locations, expanding the council’s existing charging network. The northeast England region borders Scotland and includes Hadrian’s Wall and Northumberland National Park.
Under the plan, 78% of the charge points will be installed on council-owned land, while the remaining units will be placed on land owned by third parties under licensing agreements.
The charging infrastructure is being financed with just over £1 million in external funding from the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement. Revenue generated by the chargers is being used to meet their running costs, management and maintenance, and the funding will be used to roll out charge points until 2029.
An in-house EV team at the council will install and maintain the equipment. Cllr Richard Wearmouth, the council’s cabinet member responsible for transport, said it was good to see more investment in EV charging provision. He noted that Northumberland has one of the largest road networks in the country and said it is vital to have the necessary facilities to help people get around.
The charge-point expansion follows the introduction of 14 BYD BD11 battery-electric buses in the region a few months ago.