Barnet Council to install 500 electric vehicle charge points

Barnet Council will deliver 500 on-street electric vehicle (EV) charge points by November 2022 after securing more than £3.5 million in grant funding.

Barnet currently has the second highest rate of electric car ownership in London and the grant from the Office of Zero Emissions Vehicles (OZEV) will see the charge points installed in 34 of Barnet’s residential streets by November 2022.

The £3.5m grant from the On-Street Residential Charge Point Scheme (ORCS) is the largest sum awarded to any local authority by the scheme to date and covers 75% of the expected project costs, the maximum available.

The remaining 25% of costs will either be funded by the council, a commercial partner, or in a part-funding agreement, reaching a total project value of £4.65m.

Cllr Cohen, chairman of the Barnet Council Environment Committee, said: “As we approach 2030 – the Government’s target of no new sales of petrol or diesel cars – demand for electric vehicles will continue to boom year on year.

“We welcome this major funding from the ORCS as it will allow us to greatly expand Barnet’s infrastructure for electric vehicle charge points and help ensure that lack of access to off-street parking is not a barrier to owning an electric vehicle for our residents.”

The 34 streets have been selected based on resident request, suitability for installing on-street charge points and where off-street parking is not possible.

Cohen said: “Enhanced access to on-street charging will help to encourage the uptake of electric vehicles, improve air quality in Barnet, and play a fundamental role in achieving the commitments in our forthcoming Sustainability Strategy.”

The council is developing plans to build a comprehensive and fit for purpose infrastructure to support electric vehicles and ensure charging demand will continue to be met as need grows.

This initial project is phase one of what is hoped to be an ongoing programme to support Barnet Council’s Electric Vehicle Strategy.

Transport minister Trudy Harrison said: “Our multi-million pound investment in Barnet’s EV infrastructure will make it as easy as possible for residents to charge their electric vehicles as we accelerate further towards our net zero ambitions in the wake of COP26.

“As electric cars continue to grow in popularity, I’m glad to see the council taking action at the scale that is needed, driving down emissions and cleaning up the air.”

To find out how to request a charge point, visit: www.barnet.gov.uk/roads-and-pavements/electric-vehicles-barnet

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