Green light for charge points
CALDERDALE COUNCILLORS will be asked to approve spending £140,000 to pay for electric charging points for new electric or hybrid vehicles.
The vehicles, set to be introduced from this summer, will be used across the council from children’s homes to the countryside service, and will play a major role in helping the council become carbon zero by 2038.
Ultimately use of more energy-efficient vehicles should also save around £50,000 a year, although at the moment this has to be used to offset directorate budget deficits.
When introduced the anticipated 36 new initial vehicles will include five which would be hybrid and self-charging, a further four which would be supported by home charging, leaving the balance of 27 vehicles which would require new charging infrastructure at a capital cost of £140,000, with revenue costs of £27,000 to be split between the directorates that use the fleet – Regeneration and Strategy, Public Services, Children and Young People’s Services and Adults Services and Wellbeing.
Key sites would be Battinson Road and Mulcture House in Halifax, for overnight charging.
Introducing the new vehicles will cut carbon dioxide emissions by an average of 75 per cent per vehicle and reduce nitrogen dioxide emissions, helping to improve air quality across Calderdale, a long term issue, says the council’s Cabinet member for Climate Change and Environment, Coun Scott Patient (Lab, Luddenden Foot).
“Tackling climate change and avoiding dangerous levels of global warming is an ongoing fight, and we must all keep up the great joint work done so far.
“Now we’re hoping to add 36 electric and hybrid vehicles to our fleet from summer 2020.”