Local residents have criticised the decision to offer free parking spaces for electric vehicle owners, describing it as “unfair” and warning that drivers could take advantage of the scheme.
Ashford Borough Council in Kent has been questioned over its plans to trial a new scheme to encourage drivers to ditch their petrol and diesel cars in favour of EVs.
The parking pilot will be in place for six months at the Vicarage Lane car park to see if it incentivises more drivers to use their EVs at the site.
There are six chargers at the Vicarage Lane location, with only two other locations – the Civic and Stour Centre, and Elwick Place – having more chargers in Ashford.
Despite the ambitions to accelerate the uptake of electric vehicles in the area, the move has been met with criticism from some locals, including councillors.
Members of the transportation board have warned that it could be seen as “unfair” since petrol, diesel and hybrid vehicle owners would still need to pay the full price.
Costs start from 65p for 30 minutes and £1.30 for 60 minutes. Drivers staying longer than four hours will be charged as much as £13.20.
Data from KentOnline found that Vicarage Lane is Ashford Borough Council’s most profitable car park, with £489,000 raised from fees.
Electric car owners in Ashford could soon benefit from free parking
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One car park user, Georgie Lancaster, said it was “unfair” that electric vehicle owners would be able to pay less than other drivers.
Similarly, Tony Fortune suggested that the new proposals would benefit drivers who do not need additional financial support, given their ownership of an electric vehicle.
The 76-year-old told KentOnline: “We’re never going to be able to even afford an electric car anyway, like most people I expect, so I don’t know why this idea has come up.”
Another local resident said that some drivers could take advantage of the scheme by leaving their cars parked all day while charging.
Vicarage Lane car park already has six designated electric vehicle charging bays
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They highlighted that this would further limit the amount of people who were able to use the facilities.
Councillor Paul Bartlett said the new measures would be confirmed through a traffic regulation order (TRO) and still needed to be finalised.
He clarified that while drivers would be able to park for free, they are still being charged 60p per kilowatt hour to charge in the space.
The councillor for Mersham and Sevington South with Finberry suggested that the scheme would be in place by the summer, given that a TRO takes around 12 weeks to set up.
The 185-space car park does not have automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras, with civil enforcement officers being responsible for managing the site.
A spokesperson for Ashford Borough Council emphasised that the scheme was designed to incentivise drivers to use cleaner vehicles.
They added: “Vehicles will need to be charging their vehicle whilst parked in an electric vehicle charging bay.
“We offer free parking schemes at some of our other locations to all vehicles, whilst vehicles displaying a disabled badge, and motorcycles, are also entitled to free parking schemes.”