As part of its Go Ultra Low City status, Milton Keynes has announced that Chargemaster will significantly expand the city’s public EV charge point network.
Having been awarded £9 million by Go Ultra Low, the Luton-based charge point manufacturer Chargemaster has been issued a contract worth £2.3 million to increase the available charging infrastructure.
A large chunk of the funding will be used to create two EV charging hubs, made up of Chargemaster’s Ultracharger units. These will be located near Junction 14 of the M1, and next to the main chopping centre, The Centre:MK.
Added to those hubs, 50 public charge points will be installed at locations such as sports facilities, hotels, restaurants, and other spots drivers are likely to be parked for more than an hour.
Chargemaster will also fit up to 200 on-street charge points around the city for drivers without access to off-street parking, while there will also be EC charge points supplied to support 30 electric car club parking bays.
Finally, Chargemaster plans to install points at the proposed EV Experience Centre, which will be opened in The Centre:MK in 2017. This centre will aim to educate visitors on the benefits of EVs and how to use them, along with offering ‘try before you buy’ test drives for Milton Keynes residents.
Brian Matthews, Head of Transport Innovation at Milton Keynes said: “We were delighted to be chosen to be a part of the Go Ultra Low Cities programme earlier this year. Chargemaster submitted a compelling and informative bid, which aligned with our goals.
“It could also demonstrate that the reliability of its network and the operational support it offers is second to none. We expect the first charging points to be rolled out in early 2017, making Milton Keynes an even better place to own an EV.”
David Martell, Chargemaster CEO, said: “We’re excited to be a part of Milton Keynes’ bright future as a Go Ultra Low City. The council has a vision to make the town a real showcase of what can be done to reduce emissions and increase air quality, for example. We are confident that our charging infrastructure proposal will help Milton Keynes realise these goals.”
Chargemaster already operates 170 standard and 56 rapid charging points in Milton Keynes. Run by the Department for Transport (DfT) and the Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV), Milton Keynes is one of four UK cities to win portion of £40 million government funding in the Go Ultra Low Cities programme.
Find charging points in Milton Keynes and on the Chargemaster Polar network on Zap-Map.
