Funded by the Government Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV) and Warwickshire County Council under the On-Street Residential Charging Scheme (ORCS), approximately 100 charge points have been installed across the County with Warwick District benefitting from 26 twin-headed charging points, meaning 52 electric vehicles can be charged at any one time. There are also plans to install more on-street facilities in the coming months.

Recently, almost 1,000 residents took advantage of a free parking permit trial scheme for electric vehicles. Though the trial scheme finishes on 31 July, a new scheme is currently under review and is expected to re-launch soon.

Councillor Alan Rhead, Portfolio Holder for Climate Change, said: “The electric vehicle revolution is here and isn’t slowing down. This Council is committed to supporting residents in their pursuit to switch to green and sustainable transport.

“Electric vehicles cost less to run than a petrol or diesel car and the ranges are now quite extensive, averaging around 300 miles. Given that home chargers are not feasible for everyone, we are committed to supporting residents with infrastructure to charge their vehicles as part of our climate emergency commitments.”

Cllr Heather Timms, Portfolio Holder for Heritage, Culture and the Environment at Warwickshire County Council, said: “We are committed to reducing our Carbon footprint in Warwickshire with a view to the county being Carbon neutral by 2030. The shift towards electric vehicles is integral to that so we are pleased to support the initiative and build up the EV charging point infrastructure throughout Warwickshire.”

Warwick District Council and Warwickshire County Council will continue to work together to explore applying for further charge points under a second phase of funding from OZEV. This funding will considerably expand the number of charge points available and will explore different types of technologies including lamp-post charging opportunities.