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Wellington City Council Issues Resolution Office.

Dear Mr Doyle,

 

Thank you for your email to the Council received via FYI.org on 12 June
2017 in which you requested information in respect of Electric Vehicles
(EV’s), and your follow up email received on 19 July 2017.

 

Please accept my apologies for the delay in responding to your request.
Unfortunately, whilst a response was drafted, it was not forwarded to you.

 

I will address your questions in the order of your request.

 

1) “Given that people of greater privilege are more able to afford EV’s,
does WCC consider this a subsidy to the wealthy, both in terms of
reserving parking spaces for EV’s, and provision of infrastructure?”

 

The Council does not consider the installation on EV chargers to be a
subsidy to the wealthy.

 

EV’s are a reality and as the sales of such vehicles increases, and they
become more widely used, there will be an increasing demand for facilities
to charge them.

 

Whilst the Council has no control over the price of EV’s, as with many
developing technologies, the initial costs of new technology in respects
of EV’s may be higher than that of conventional vehicles, though as they
become more widely available that cost tends to decline. For example, an
EV entering the market as a new vehicle now would be expected to have a 15
year period of re-sales thus generating a used market for such vehicles.

 

It should also be noted that the Council is not subsidising the purchase
of EV’s; only creating the ability to re-charge such vehicles in a small
number of the total available on-street parking spaces within the city.

 

2) “Does WCC really consider that EV charging stations are necessary,
given the fairly reasonable range of electric cars?”

 

Again, it should be noted that only a small number of the current parking
spaces are to be made available for the re-charging of EV’s.

 

As outlined in the answer to question 1, the number of EV’s is expected to
increase in New Zealand and Wellington. Given 68% of Wellington’s
residents have no access to off street parking, and as such, limited
ability to re-charge EV’s, then they are unlikely to purchase such
vehicles.

 

If the Council wants to promote the use of EV’s, then as the largest
provider of on-street parking spaces in the city, the Council is well
placed to address this issue.

 

3) “Will users of the charging stations need to pay for the charging
service?”

 

Yes, in all cases, though Spark is providing free electricity for one year
at the locations they are going to operate, 10 of the 13 stations, though
this is at no cost to the Council.

 

4) “Will users have to pay for the time their car is parked, regardless of
whether charging?”

 

Yes, where we already meter the parking it will still be metered.

 

5) “The article seems to associate the provision of charging stations to
the uptake of EV’s usage and claims benefits in emissions but seems to
ignore the fact that congestion will remain unchanged. Does WCC have any
plans to provide EV charging points for smaller EV’s like scooters,
electric wheelchairs and bicycles, which do more to resolve congestion,
and are affordable for more people?”

 

Whilst the Council is exploring options for other EV’s, one of the key
issues is that there is no standardised charging option which makes it
difficult for the Council to assess where and how it is safe to charge
them.

 

Further information in respect of vehicle use and congestion etc. is
available via the following link:

 

[1]http://www.getwellymoving.co.nz/

 

Kind regards,

Ian.

 

 

Ian Hunter
Assurance Advisor | Complaints and Information Assurance | Governance and
Assurance Directorate | Wellington City Council
P 04 803 8315 | M 021 227 8315 |
E [2][email address] | W [3]Wellington.govt.nz | [4]Facebook|
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References

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