130 new publicly accessible Electric Vehicle chargers to be installed across Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole starting this summer

BCP Council has announced the roll out of over 130 new publicly accessible Electric Vehicle (EV) charger bays, to be installed at multiple locations across Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole over the next year. This huge expansion of council-provided chargers, coupled with those offered by supermarkets and hotels in the conurbation, will make the area one of the best places in the country to visit with or to own an electric vehicle.

The first phase of the roll out will see a mixture of new fast and rapid chargers installed at 34 council owned car parks this summer (see the list of first phase locations below). Rapid chargers (50kW) will allow most electric cars to be charged from empty to 80% in around 40 minutes or smaller top-ups in a shorter time. The fast chargers (22kW) are more suited to district centres where shoppers can fully charge their cars during a two-hour stay or can just add some juice during whatever period they are parked.

Councillor Mike Greene, BCP Council’s portfolio holder for transport and sustainability said:

"This transformational step forward in the provision of EV charging infrastructure in our area is about making sure that we are prepared for the future. The siting of these new chargers in public car parks means that they are easily accessible for local people who do not have charging points at their homes, as well as for visitors. With so many chargers, spread across so much of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, there should be a charger nearby for everyone.

"Many drivers want to make the switch from their conventional petrol or diesel vehicles to electric but are worried about where they will be able to charge their cars when taking longer trips and visiting new areas. We are taking that worry away by providing a comprehensive network of publicly accessible chargers, with the potential to grow it still further over the next year or two."

Like the existing BCP Council EV chargers, which were subject to a replacement programme last year, the new chargers will all be fully accessible to the public, making it easy for both locals and visiting EV owners to charge their vehicles whilst they visit nearby facilities such as the shops, parks, beaches, restaurants and leisure centres.

Mer, Europe’s largest generator of renewable energy, will be providing the new chargers, which will be installed and maintained by their UK partner, Joju Charging. As with the existing EV chargers, users will be able to pay via the Mer app, (downloadable onto smart phones); by using various roaming partners such as Zap Pay; or, when using a rapid charger, by tapping a contactless bank card reader on the Charger itself.

Joju Charging’s Head of Sales, Chas Warlow, said:

"The electric car market is growing quickly, with over 395,000 pure-electric cars on UK roads at the end of 2021, and more than 740,000 plug-in models including plug-in hybrids. We are delighted to be working with BCP and Mer UK on this major project."