Northumberland County Council has passed a motion to add 36 public electric vehicle charge points at 26 locations, expanding its existing charging network. The county in northeast England borders Scotland and is known for Hadrian’s Wall and Northumberland National Park. Of the new points, 78% will be installed on land owned by the council. The remaining chargers will be located on third-party land through licensing agreements.
The new suite will add 36 units to the council’s network. The installation is being financed with just over £1 million in external funding from the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement. That funding will be used to roll out the charge points until 2029. Revenue generated by the chargers is being used to meet their running costs, management and maintenance.
The council’s in-house EV team will install and maintain the equipment. Richard Wearmouth, the cabinet member responsible for transport, said the investment would improve EV charging provision in Northumberland. He noted that the county 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 additional charge points follow the recent entry into service of 14 BYD BD11 battery-electric buses in the region.