Dumfries and Galloway Council are working with the Energy Savings Trust Scotland to produce a feasibility report into how to develop the public electric charging network in Annan, Gretna, Moffat, Lockerbie, Lochmaben and surrounding areas.
And they hope to be able to bid into Transport Scotland’s Switched on Towns and Cities Challenge Fund to get 26 new charging sites across the west of the region.
Meanwhile, the local authority transport team have secured £100,000 to put in a rapid and fast charger at Wigtown.
In a report on the subject for councillors, transport and operations manager Gordon Bryce said: “The work surrounding public charging infrastructure continues at pace with an additional 28 charging bays going live this year and another four before the end of March 21.”
He also revealed the council have received a £200,000 grant to procure electric cars to support the phasing out of their diesel car fleet by 2025, along with £90,000 for 40 charging points at council sites.
Mr Bryce said: “Will be looking at 12–16 fully electric cars on four year leases, which will result in 20–25 per cent of our car fleet being electric.”
He noted that the move supports the climate emergency work being done by the council, including a plan be carbon zero by 2025, adding: “Seventeen per cent of carbon emissions within D&G is produced from the transport sector, cars, LGVs, motorbikes and HGVs.
“In order to reduce this, we must create an infrastructure to support alternative fuelled vehicles, currently the best technology for this is electric vehicles which in turn require a number of infrastructural solutions.
“These include a non-exhaustive list of charging hubs, rapid chargers, residential charging, social car hubs, on kerb chargers and magnetic charging.”
- Pictured above, Claire Johnson with the charging point at the Hetland Hall Hotel
