Wellington City Council is moving to lower transport emissions by agreeing to install the first set of electric vehicle
charging stations in residential areas.
This will enable those people who don’t have off-street parking and are unable to charge their vehicles at home to buy
and operate an electric car. More than 17,000 Wellington properties face this obstacle to recharging.
This initiative is part of a two-year pilot that will assess whether there is a viable market for slow charging in the
residential streets of Wellington.
“We have a number of charging stations in the CBD but residential charging stations will mean EVs could be a practical
option for Wellingtonians wanting to make the switch to them,” says Mayor Justin Lester.
Transport Portfolio Leader Councillor Chris Calvi-Freeman sees this as a positive step to reducing our carbon emissions.
“Road transport currently contributes 38 percent of the city’s emissions. We want to help Wellingtonians to make good,
environmentally friendly choices by making charging facilities available to those who could not otherwise access them.”
Last year the Council asked Wellingtonians who was interested in purchasing electric vehicles in the near future and
where they thought chargers should be available. They received more than 80 requests. Following further consultation, 15
of the 17 locations put forward were confirmed by Councillors at a committee meeting last week.
Typically they are located in areas with little off-street parking such as Newtown and Aro Valley and also include a
location outside Wellington Zoo, so people can charge while they visit one of the city’s most popular destinations.
As part of last week’s decision, the Council will work with residents to identify a further 10 charging locations.
Users will pay to use the chargers and receive a text message encouraging them to move on after charging is completed.
Installation is expected to start before July with the City Council and ChargeNet NZ each contributing 25 percent of the
cost and ECCA providing 50 percent.
Sites approved last week:
• Rodney St
• Holloway Rd
• Epuni St
• Miramar North Rd
• Hornsey Rd
• Jackson St
• Melbourne Rd
• Coromandel St near 66
• Coromandel St near 4
• Wright St
• Karepa St
• Stanley St
• Hall St
• Austin St
• Manchester St, near Wellington Zoo
Two sites were not approved but will be revisited later: Bank Rd and Mersey St.