Mason Moore | Hinckley Reporter | 12 January 2022
ELECTRIC VEHICLE owners in Earl Shilton have started charging their vehicles at newly-installed public points in the town centre.
Drivers have started using the new electric vehicle charging points (EVCPs) starting last month in December, after they were installed by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council (HBBC) inside of the Hall Fields car park.
Each charger is a Pod Point 7KWH twin point, which is able to charge up two cars at the same time.
The points run off the same app as those used at electric charge points in Hinckley car parks, making it easier for electric vehicle drivers to charge up on borough council-owned car parks.
Funding for the points totalled £82,500, and this was secured from the Office of Low Emissions, as a part of the government’s plan to ‘increase the charging infrastructure’ for electric vehicles, ready for the end of the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030.
Increasing the number of electric charging points available to borough residents and visitors is a ‘key action’ in the council’s ‘ambitious’ Climate Change strategy.
And, this will be essential if the council hope to meet the government target of becoming a carbon neutral borough by 2050.
A Council spokesperson stated the locations were chosen because they have a high number of properties in close proximity with no private parking where a home charger can be installed. Therefore, these residents will have to rely on a public charging network.
Council Leader, Coun. Stuart Bray, said: “We are pleased to see this charge point now in use – we’ve already seen many electric vehicle drivers using them. It is important to us that the council provides the essential infrastructure needed to encourage more car owners in the borough to choose electric vehicles over petrol and diesel equivalents.
“The new charge points we’re installing are located in key villages in the borough, making driving an electric vehicle easier than ever. Travel is one of the biggest contributors to our borough’s carbon footprint, so, as part of our response to the climate and ecological emergency, it’s vital we make the changes needed to help tackle this.”
Coun. Martin Cartwright, the Borough Council’s Executive Member for Climate Change and Rural Affairs, added: “It’s been great to see so many drivers using this new charge point. We hope that it encourages even more electric vehicle usage as we look to lower Hinckley and Bosworth’s carbon footprint even further.
“As part of the government funding, residents living within a short walking distance of the car parks will be eligible for permits to enable them to park for free while charging at the points. The offer aims to make it easier for residents who may not have off street parking available at home to charge a vehicle nearby in a bid to make electric vehicles more appealing in the future.”
Now the council’s have installed the new charge points in Earl Shilton, they plan to install more in Market Bosworth’s Rectory Lane car park and Barwell’s Stanley Street car park “in the coming months”.
This will mean a total of 11 new charging points will be available in the borough in addition to the 12 twin charging points already located in Hinckley.