On-street charging hubs
Fifteen more on-street charging hubs for electric vehicles (EVs) are being readied for a switch-on by the City Council.
The on-street hubs will each have up to six charging points. They are part of a national scheme and build on work led by the City Council helping to make it more convenient for EV owners to charge up where off-street parking is limited, such as in terraced streets.
Five other similar hubs in Gilley Law, Grangetown, Hetton Downs, Roker and Southwick went live in 2023 as part of a pilot scheme. They have proved popular with EV owners and will be joined by the 15 new hubs which include streets in Shiney Row, Ryhope, Town End Farm and Sulgrave in Washington.
Councillor Lindsey Leonard, the City Council's Cabinet Member for Environment, Transport and Net Zero, said: "The aim and goal is a very straight-forward one - by providing reliable charging infrastructure in neighbourhoods we're supporting residents who want to make the switch to EV.
"It's about removing barriers to charging for EV owners who might not have their own private parking space for charging."
Alongside the hubs, the council has installed more than 35 cross-pavement EV charging channels. These support residents who do not have access to a driveway by helping them charge at home on residential electricity tariffs.
Residents interested in pavement channels for charging are required to make a one-off contribution of £350 towards installation costs. Residents can register their interest by emailing details to [email protected]
The schemes are part of wider local and national support programmes for expanding EV infrastructure.
Cllr Leonard added: "EVs help make our city cleaner, quieter and more resilient, improving the quality of life for residents and businesses and supporting longer-term goals of sustainability and becoming a low-carbon city."
Earlier this year, the council announced it was rolling out a dozen new locations for charge points at visitor sites and country parks helping to cement Sunderland's status as a centre for EVs. At the beginning of this year there were more than 500 public EV charge-points across the city.
