Council opens town centre rapid electric vehicle charging points
Anthony Lewis, local democracy reporter
People can now charge their electric vehicles at three town centre car parks in Rhondda Cynon Taf (RCT).
The council has announced that there are new 50 kw (kilowatt) direct current rapid chargers which are ready to use at Aberdare Library car park, Tonypandy lower car park, and Pontypridd’s Goods Yard car park.
The installation of electric vehicle charging areas is part of the council’s goal to become a carbon-neutral local authority by 2030.
Cardiff Capital Region
RCT Council has worked with the Cardiff Capital Region, Welsh Government, and UK Government on the installation of 76 electric vehicle chargers at 65 community locations in the county borough since the first installations were completed in May 2022.
The council is aiming for 90% of residents to be within a mile of a charger by the end of the decade.
The council says these charging points will give people a substantial charge in about an hour.
Councillor Maureen Webber BEM, deputy leader of the council and cabinet member with responsibility for climate change said, said: “We’ve come a long way with support from the Welsh Government and our partners. These new rapid chargers are another big step towards making everyday EV use more practical and convenient for everyone in our communities.
“Electric vehicle drivers can now visit Aberdare, Pontypridd, and Tonypandy town centres for shopping or having a meal while their electric cars or vans are receiving a rapid recharge over the period of their stay.”
As part of phase one the council got funding after working closely with the Cardiff Capital Region for more than 70 installations across 31 sites including mix of 7kw and 22kw chargers.
Phase two
In phase two the council got further funding from UK Government for 26 more locations including public, community centre, and leisure/education site car parks.
The council said this will be complemented by funding from Welsh Government and the Cardiff Capital Region.
Other installations as a result of external funding such as the Welsh Government’s Ultra-Low Emission Vehicle (ULEV) Transformation Fund and the Sports for All Grant include Cynon Valley Indoor Bowls, Dare Community Sports Hall, several units at Robertstown Business Park, Aberdare Cemetery, Bronwydd Pool, Llwydcoed Crematorium, Rhondda Fach Sports Centre, Trealaw Cemetery, and Treorchy Cemetery.
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These are slow chargers at 50Kw. Fast chargers are between 200Kw and 300kw.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcD4iFhKiXE
See Norway.
Carbon neutral free by 2030 but just installing chargers half way through 2025.
According to ZapMap, the Aberdare Library chargers are actually 100kW, not 50kW. And the pricing isn’t actually terrible at 53p per kWh. Most commercial EV chargers are around 79p to 83p per kWh, which is far worse than petrol prices. That’s the part that public charging infrastructure needs to get right: cost. I have an off-peak (2330-0530) cost of 7p per kWh for my EV charger at home, and even if I wanted to charge in peak times it’s still only 29p per kWh. It’s practically nothing, even if I had a completely flat battery, it would only cost me… Read more »
Strange priorities for RCT council to spend money on making life more convenient for people rich enough to afford an electric car, while demanding 5% more year after year from council tax payers. Interesting to note that the council press release fails to disclose how much they are spending on this.
Careful you don’t slip off that high horse, it’s a long way to fall. Second-hand EVs can be found for around £8,000, and even in that price range you can still expect around 200 miles of range minimum. Sure, you could pick up a crusty old petrol or diesel powered banger for £1,000 and run it into the ground – many people do just that – but £8,000 is hardly “only people rich enough to afford it” territory. You didn’t look very hard for costs. RCTCBC published its “Electric Vehicle Charging Implementation Plan” document in 2023 – that document gives… Read more »
Thank you for your reply. I did look, and I found the ‘per charger’ numbers quoted in a forward-looking document, i.e. how much these things might cost, but it is rare that any public-sector investment comes in anywhere near budget. I couldn’t find anything quantifying how much it has spent or is planning to spend in aggregate. Given that council budgets are stretched and most councils are pleading poverty to justify tax rises, I think it would only be fair of them to be more open about what they have spent. You are right that much of the funding comes… Read more »