A network of on-street electric vehicle charging points will be installed across Edinburgh following the scheme’s approval by councillors.

Members of Edinburgh Council’s Transport and Environment Committee last week confirmed a detailed project plan for the installation of the charging points, which will include locations for 66 charging stations spread across 14 hubs.

In October last year, the Electric Vehicle Infrastructure business case was given the go-ahead and proposed the introduction of 211 on-street charging points by 2023.

The scheme was priced at around £3.3 million and is expected to result in carbon savings of 7,715 tonnes, as well as more than 14 tonnes of Nitrogen Dioxide savings.

Electric vehicle uptake is rising across the UK, and Edinburgh is home to nearly one-quarter of all licensed electric vehicles in Scotland.

In 2011, there were only nine electric vehicles in the capital, compared with 489 in 2017.

Related: Edinburgh Councillors Support Roll-out of Electric Taxi Fleet

The initial roll-out of the infrastructure project will be backed by a £2.2 million grant from Transport Scotland. Prior to the installation phase, which is expected to run from January to December 2020, a new project board will be established, the council said.

Supported by the Electric Vehicle Working Group, the board will meet regularly to oversee the implementation of the project and provide “robust governance” of the plan.

Transport and Environment Convener, Councillor Lesley Macinnes, commented: “We are leading the country with our bold, strategic approach to providing on-street electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and I’m delighted that we’re now able to move forward with the first stage of our implementation plan.

“We’ve seen an exponential rise in the popularity of electric vehicles over the last few years, and we want to see this continue. Encouraging drivers to choose environmentally friendly modes of transport over diesel or petrol cars will have a real impact on our air quality so it’s essential that we provide the infrastructure to allow this.”

The infrastructure project will also ensure that charging equipment is located on roads, rather than pavements, to reduce street congestion.

To support residents’ parking options, the charging stations will also be located “near, but not adjacent to” properties, and a framework will be established to prevent the misuse of allocated spots.

“An enforcement policy is currently under development to ensure electric vehicle bays, which will operate 24-hours a day, seven days a week, are not used for unlimited parking and are reserved for electric vehicles,” the council said.

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