TORRIDGE District Council, in partnership with ChargePoint UK, has installed some of the first publicly accessible electric car charging points in car parks in Northern Devon, including ones in Holsworthy’s Manor Car Park.

With the government announcing that petrol and diesel cars will be phased out after 2040 and investment and ownership of electrical vehicles continuing to rise, councillors have decided to act now to provide facilities for both tourists and residents at strategic locations across the district. The timing coincides with recent climate change protests staged by local children calling for a reduction in emissions including private transport with a switch to electric cars seen as one of the ways to achieve this.

The 55kw rapid charging units that have been installed represent the latest in charging technology and have the capacity to charge two vehicles at a time from empty to 80% in 30 minutes.

The joint venture with ChargePoint means that the up-front costs to implementation are lower, allowing the council to take advantage of subsequent improvements in technology which is accelerating at an ever faster rate.

Since 2011 this has already seen the range of electric cars increase from 100 to 310 miles.