Hartlepool aims to introduce more electric car charging points

Councillors want to see more done to ensure electric car charging points are installed across town, especially as part of new housing developments.

Cllr Marjorie James told the latest meeting of Hartlepool Borough Council’s neighbourhood services committee: “As far as I understand it at the moment, planning does not require us to add to planning requirements for developers to include electric points in the homes that they are currently building, which obviously means the public purse at some point will be requested to pick all this up.

“I think there is work that we need to do, but we also need to lobby the Government to ensure that new developments do include the necessary number for electric vehicles to be charged.”

Cllr Sue Little also raised concerns and said she was pleased the issue was on the agenda, adding: “I think we’re lacking behind a lot of other towns and I’d really like to see us really focus on getting electric car points across the town.”

Matthew King, council planning policy team leader, said developers must “investigate opportunities” for electric vehicle charging points as part of the Local Plan.

He said: “It doesn’t set a specific level but it’s something that, certainly since the plan’s been adopted in 2018, we have been asking developers for.

“It’s something that we’ve had differing levels of success with with different developers, both residential and industrial units, so it is something that’s on the climate change agenda and certainly something that we’re trying to get developers to do more and more.”

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