New town centre electric car charging points announced

Six town centre car parks will get new electric car charging points thanks to investment from the Tees Valley Combined Authority.

The new points are part of a rollout which will see chargers installed in 32 public car parks the length and breadth of the Tees Valley – boosting the number of available charging points by 75%.

It is hoped the new points will make it easier residents to with electric cars to charge them while out and about, and encourage more drivers to switch from traditional petrol or diesel vehicles to the cleaner alternative.

Installation is due to begin early in the new year, with the first 21 sites expected to be up and running by the early summer.

Studies are now being carried out as to which other car parks across the region could also form part of this first phase of installations, leading to up to 40 sites benefitting from the new charging points.

Cllr Heather Scott, Tees Valley Combined Authority’s Cabinet Lead for Transport, said: “I am delighted that these charging points are being installed across the Tees Valley. It’s an important step in making it easier for people to change their daily habits, use cleaner transport and make a real difference to climate change.”

The new charging points will be in Abbott's Yard, Winston Street North, Commercial Street West, Park Place East, Park Place West and Kendrew Street West.

Mayor Houchen said: “For too long electric car owners across Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool have had to make do with a charging infrastructure that is simply not fit for purpose.

“If we want to encourage more people to switch to electric vehicles we need to invest in the infrastructure needed, for too long there has been a lack of charging points available in public car parks and many of those that have been installed over the past few years are broken, limiting the number of charging options for local people and ultimately deterring people from making the switch away from petrol and diesel.

“I’m determined to fix this so that local people have access to good quality, reliable and abundant public charging points. That’s why I am making our biggest investment to date in charging points, which will deliver the biggest expansion of public chargers ever in Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool.

“We talk a lot about decarbonising our businesses, and our projects that are leading the way for the cleaner, safer and healthier industries and jobs of tomorrow, and this is yet another way we’re helping everyone play a part in our net zero ambitions.”