Three rapid electric vehicle charging points are now up and running at Harrogate Borough Council’s new Civic Centre – and they’re free to use until 31 December 2017.
The chargers have their own dedicated recharging bays and are available for public use seven days a week.
Situated within the visitor car park of the council’s new Civic Centre on St Luke’s Avenue in Harrogate, the high capacity charging points have tethered cables and include CCS, CHAdeMO and AC connectors. A full charge typically takes only around 30 minutes, allowing for a quick turnaround and a high number of users per day.
The charging points are the next step in Harrogate Borough Council’s plans to work with partners across the district to deliver more electric vehicle chargers for use by the growing number of plug-in vehicles in the area. Harrogate Borough Council is set to announce a new strategy for provision of electric vehicle charging points in February 2018 as part of its vision to have the most ambitious and forward-looking programme for electric vehicles of any borough council in the country.
In the meantime, current users of electric vehicles are encouraged to come down to the Civic Centre and try out the new facility for free up until Sunday 31 December. From Monday 1 January 2018, the cost will be just £3.50 for a 30 minute charge.
Phil Ireland, Harrogate Borough council’s cabinet member for sustainable transport, said:
Electric vehicles are set to grow massively in popularity over the next 10 years, as many manufacturers switch from petrol engines to electric. Working with partners, we need to ensure that we are in a position to meet the demand for rapid charging points that this switch to electric will require.
The council is committed to making Harrogate district the best place to live, work and visit, and our undertaking to become a more electric vehicle friendly district will help improve air quality as well.
I’m delighted that, as part of the council’s new civic centre, we are providing these rapid charging points for the public, customers and staff to use, and hope that many people will take advantage of this initial free offer running between now and the end of the year.
The first member of the public to use the chargers was Alan Everard from Wetherby.
Mr Everard said:
These chargers are a very welcome addition for all the EV owners in the North Yorkshire area. This will add a new dimension for travellers to Harrogate, both as a conference town or holidaymakers to the Dales.
It’s also such a refreshing change to see that these chargers are ‘Pay as you Go’, instead of part of one of the National Charging networks. Well done Harrogate Borough Council.
