Northumberland County Council has passed a motion to add 36 electric vehicle charging points at 26 locations, expanding its existing public charging network. The county in northeast England borders Scotland and includes Hadrian’s Wall and Northumberland National Park. Under the plan, 78 per cent of the new charge points will be installed on land it owns, while the remaining units will sit on third-party land under licensing agreements.
The work is being financed with just over £1 million in external funding from the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement. Revenue generated by the chargers is being used to cover running costs, management and maintenance, and the funding will support the rollout until 2029. An in-house EV team at the council will install and maintain the equipment.
Cllr Richard Wearmouth, Cabinet Member with responsibility for transport at Northumberland County Council, said the investment would improve EV charging provision in the county. He noted that Northumberland has one of the largest road networks in the country and said it was vital to have the necessary facilities to help people get around.
The charging plan comes after the region recently introduced 14 BYD BD11 battery-electric buses into service, a few months before the charge-point plan.