On Tuesday, the government of British Columbia announced it has added 12 EV charging sites on provincial roads and has plans to install several more.
“We’re making it convenient for people who drive electric vehicles to travel across the province,” said Claire Trevena, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure. “Investing in green infrastructure is a necessity when it comes to tackling climate change and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”
Nine of the completed sites are direct-current (DC) fast chargers that will allow drivers to charge their EVs in 30 minutes or less. The other three sites, which are part of the Accelerate Kootenays electric vehicle charging network, provide Level 2 stations. EVs can be fully charged at a Level 2 station in four-to-six hours.
According to a press release from the BC government, the ministry has issued an invitation to tender for the development of six new DC fast charger sites to be mostly located along highways 16 and 97, with another site planned for later this summer.
Michelle Mungall, Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources said “This new series of electric vehicle chargers will strengthen our existing charging network and make it easier to charge up.”
The additional EV charging stations, along with EV incentives are part of the BC government’s CleanBC plan. Currently, it is estimated that there are over 20,000 electric vehicles in the province of British Columbia and that number is expected to grow to 350,000 by 2030. There are over 1,700 EV charging stations in BC.
“We’re committed to a cleaner future here in B.C. As part of that, we’re making zero-emission vehicles more accessible,” said George Heyman, Minister of Environment and Climate Strategy. “The more electric vehicles we have on our roads, the less we pollute, and that benefits people and communities everywhere.”
Under the CleanBC plan, by 2040, every car sold in BC will be a zero emission vehicle.
In this year’s budget, the Horgan government committed $107 million over three years to help residents switch to clean transportation. $42 million was earmarked for zero-emission vehicle point of purchase incentives, along with $6 million to support light duty electric fleets.
$10 million for medium- and heavy-duty electric vehicle incentives, as well as $20 million support for new public fast-charging and hydrogen fuelling stations, $5 million supporting home and workplace charging stations, and $5 million for charging stations at highway rest areas and government buildings.
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