RBWM looks to ramp up electric vehicle charging points in Windsor and Maidenhead

Electric vehicle charging capacity is set to increase in the Borough following a decision by cabinet this week.

Councillors opted to approve a plan to send out an invitation to tender for the delivery, operation and maintenance of EV charge points in Windsor and Maidenhead.

This would enable the council to begin delivery of its 10-year ‘EV Chargepoint Implementation Plan’ – delivering an additional 225 charging sockets around the borough.

Councillor Geoff Hill, cabinet member for highways and transport, said in the meeting that the Borugh ‘put out a whopping 219 kilotons of CO2 in 2020’.

“In our borough, 33 per cent of carbon emissions come from the vehicles on our roads and switching the way we power our cars and vans is vital,” he said in a statement.

“There are approximately 4,000 electric cars in the borough today, and this number is growing exponentially.

“By 2035, it is anticipated that there will be 50,000 electric cars in the borough.”

“To meet this demand, the borough will need to have introduced approximately 600 on-street charging sockets and 125 charging sockets in council car parks across the borough.

“Increasingly, residents are expecting to find convenient electric vehicle charging infrastructure available in the borough that enables them to switch to and drive an EV with confidence sooner.”

In addition, the council is bidding for capital funding from the Department for Transport (DfT) which, if successful, would allow it to fast track the rollout of new charge point infrastructure.

This would be part of a public-private commercial partnership with charge point operating companies.

The borough adopted its EV Chargepoint Implementation Plan earlier this year.

The plan proposed an annual £200,000 of council investment to partner with one or more providers of EV charge points – this investment coming through CIL or S106 contributions from developers.

The council also secured £327,000 of EV revenue funding over two years from the DfT.

The Borough was invited to bid for a further £927,000 of associated capital funding in November. A

bid for this capital funding is being finalised.