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Hundreds of new electric vehicle charging points are to be put in place across Monklands and the wider Lanarkshire area this year as part of a “groundbreaking” £5 million pilot project.

North and South Lanarkshire Councils are working with Transport Scotland and Scottish Power Energy Networks (SPEN) to install 220 chargers at 37 sites across the region by December – five times as many as are currently available, and which will boost the total number of vehicle charging points in all of Scotland by 25 per cent in just six months.

The new facilities will be installed in council-owned car parks across the two local authority areas, with specific locations currently being identified and installation work due to begin next month in support of the Scottish Government target to phase out new petrol and diesel vehicles in 12 years’ time.

Councillors on North Lanarkshire’s environment and transportation committee gave their backing to the initiative, known as Project PACE, at their latest meeting.

Its convener, Glenboig councillor Michael McPake, said: “This is an innovative, ambitious plan for Lanarkshire that will see a real increase in the electric vehicle charging infrastructure by the end of this year.

“The Scottish Government aims to phase out the need for new petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2032 – these plans are designed to pave the way for that to become a reality, and the new network will contribute to reducing air pollution and providing access to clean energy for our residents.”

SNP group spokesperson William Goldie also welcomed the project and partnership with the neighbouring council, Transport Scotland and SPEN.

He said: “North Lanarkshire Council’s contribution will be to supply the landfill communities, and it is anticipated that the first charging point will be in place by April.”

Councillor Goldie added that there have recently been “a number of requests from residents about public access points”, and said: “This is a very positive development and a starting point for a fully connected electric vehicle network.”

Project PACE will see 162 rapid and 58 fast (dual socket) chargers installed, across 22 large, high-voltage hubs and 15 medium facilities with low-voltage connections, in what is described as a “scalable trial”.

It will focus on public charging network availability, such as on-street charging in urban residential areas, shared off-street charging such as in apartment block car parks, and at strategic locations on trunk roads.

The Scottish Government partnership was first announced last August, and councillors heard that North and South Lanarkshire had been chosen to pilot the “clean energy for transport” project as “the most populous area, ideally located in central Scotland”.

Monklands’ current charging points include locations at Airdrie and Blairhill stations, Muiryhall Street car park and Maxim ofice park.

Councillors were told of the new project: “The chargers will be sited outwith areas where electric vehicle (EV) charging is already being pursued by other large multi-national providers on a commercial basis.

“The principle of this rollout is to provide access to communities traditionally challenged with transport connectivity and availability of low-carbon technology.”

Locations are being considered based on areas of potential demand, public access, existing electricity network infrastructure and capacity, available land and minimising construction costs.

The report for committee members added: “This proposal presents multiple benefits to North Lanarkshire in relation to carbon reduction, tackling barriers to financial inclusion and connectivity within communities.

“In order to meet Scotland’s 2032 ambition, EV charging and migration to electric-powered vehicles is a key component; accelerated uptake in Scotland could see around 700,000 electric vehicles on the road in our region by 2032, from a current baseline of 11,000.

“Transport accounted for the largest portion of net emissions in Scotland in 2017; [these] proposals would realise a positive environmental impact as the introduction of charging infrastructure would actively encourage the use of EVs and reduce the number of polluting vehicles in North Lanarkshire’s communities.

“With decarbonisation of the electricity grid, the reduction in emissions in the area would continue to increase and thereby be in line with the council’s own climate emergency declaration.”

SPEN director of network planning and regulation Scott Mathieson said: “We’re delighted that North Lanarkshire will be involved in this innovative pilot project which will help Scotland drive towards its ambitious net zero carbon emissions targets.

“Decarbonisation of transport is critical to these ambitions; this partnership is a fantastic example of how smarter working together can help us respond to the climate change emergency efficiently and benefit both the environment and our customers.

“It will serve as a blueprint for other areas across the country in the shift to electric vehicles, ensuring every community has equal access to charging points connected into Scotland’s electricity networks.

“We’re focused on ensuring Scotland has access to a world-leading electric vehicle charging network and the electricity infrastructure needed to support it.”