County gets £7.3m for electric vehicle charging

Government funding has been awarded to 44 councils to improve and develop their electric vehicle infrastructure

A county has been awarded £7.3m in government funding to develop its electric vehicle (EV) charging network.

Suffolk County Council confirmed it would receive £5.9m to develop on-street charging points across the county.

A further £1.4m is to be used to develop the county's existing EV infrastructure.

Richard Rout, the council's deputy leader and cabinet member for finance and environment, said the funding would allow the council to "play its part" to meet EV demand.

The money is part of more than £185m allocated to councils under the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure fund.

The Conservative-run council said the funding would allow it to develop kerbside and car park charging points as well as community charging hubs.

It will be used to support EV charging for residents without off-street facilities.

Residents are able to nominate their street for consideration of charging points using an online form.

'Improving air quality'

The authority said while not all roads would be suitable, it would help indicate where demand was.

Mr Rout said a recent council-commissioned report suggested "a need for 2,000 standard chargers and 40 to 60 rapid charging stations in Suffolk by 2030".

“Supporting Suffolk’s residents, businesses and visitors to move to EVs goes beyond just using less petrol and diesel," he added.

"It’s about improving Suffolk’s air quality and enabling us to live healthier lives, and reducing the impacts of climate change which have once again been brought into sharp focus by the many storms and flooding events we’ve seen in recent months.”

While determined to encourage a transition to EVs, Mr Rout said the council was still keen to promote walking, cycling and using public transport.

The council aims to be net zero by 2030.