Electric charging points increased
But old ones need maintaining
There are plans to introduce additional electric vehicle charging points at three Stirling locations.
A funding application has been submitted by Stirling Council to install eight points at the top part of Wellgreen car park for residents with parking permits and members of the public.
At Castleview the local authority have been awarded cash from Transport Scotland to install a new substation which will allow additional chargers to be installed.
The council is also considering an application for a charging point point at the community centre car park in Braehead after significant interest in the move from residents, the community council there and elected members.
Discussions are also underway with enforcement teams regarding a possible traffic order to prevent vehicles that are not charging from using the dedicated bays.
Stirling MSP Bruce Crawford said positive steps are being taken to encourage the use of sustainable transport in the area.
He added: “It is fantastic to hear that drivers of electric vehicles will benefit from this investment from Transport Scotland and Stirling Council.
“Across my constituency I regularly hear from people who want to make the leap to greener transport and this is welcome news for all those who want to play their part in making Scotland a more sustainable and eco-friendly nation.
“Funding from the Scottish Government has allowed projects for electric vehicles at Castleview to get off the ground and further applications for sites at Wellgreen show a positive move towards sustainable transport.”
Tesla also confirmed this week that they would be bringing one of their ‘superchargers’ to Stirling later this year, although a date and location have yet to be established.
There are three main types of charger that electric vehicles can use.
Fast chargers typically take around two to three hours to fully power a vehicle and these can currently be found at sites including Forthside, the University of Stirling and Forth Valley College.
Rapid chargers are quicker and can charge a car to around 80 per cent in 30 minutes. These can be found at Castleview park and ride.
Slow chargers are more commonly used overnight and can take from six to eight hours for some vehicles.
One electric vehicle user, who lives in the Stirling area, reckons the council need to do more to maintain the charging points already in place.
He said: “The added provision of charging points has to be welcomed because of the dearth of rapid chargers at present.
“But there is no point in providing chargers if the council are going to fail to maintain them, which has been an issue. An example is the rapid charger at Castleview, which was out for months.
“The council need to look at access to Castleview park and ride because it’s shut at night. Last week only one rapid charger was available in Stirling and it was at the services and it was being provided by a commercial organisation for which people had to pay.”
He added that the proposals for Braehead showed foresight but said it is essential that the council takes enforcement action against people who park in a space which is designated for electric vehicle parking.
Transport Scotland are yet to tell the council of their 2018-19 funding allocation.
The lack of chargers in the Balfron and Killearn areas has been identified as one area of focus.
The council also intend to apply to Transport Scotland’s Switched On Towns And Cities fund and develop an electric vehicle policy document that will cover issues including the siting of rapid and slow chargers, tariffs for parking and parking charges.
Stirling East councillor Alison Laurie added: “I’m delighted that a possible site has been identified in Braehead that would allow residents to charge electric vehicles.
“There is clear interest from residents in my ward and I am delighted that Stirling Council have committed to developing a policy to promote the use of electric vehicles as we look to workable alternatives to petrol and diesel vehicles.”