Town of Cambridge to hit drivers with fee to charge electric car

Motorists who charge their electric vehicle in Cambridge Street or at Floreat Beach will soon be charged themselves.

The Town of Cambridge’s two-year free trial of public EV charging facilities is nearing an end and won’t be extended.

Charging while at the beach or at Leederville Town Hall won’t be expensive by today’s refuelling standards. At $4-$10 per session, re-charging will cost little more than a takeaway coffee.

The free trial was approved by Cambridge council in June 2019 and charging stations installed in 2020 as part of the town’s sustainability strategy, which advocates for more sustainable transport options.

Last year Floreat’s station was used almost twice per day on average, but the station in Cambridge Street was used less than once a day. At those rates — which are expected to increase in line with the growing number of EV users — the Town of Cambridge will recoup about $3500 next year, charging $0.30/kWh.

Australian Electric Vehicle Association WA branch chair Ant Day acknowledged that while some electric car owners wouldn’t agree with the introduction of a charge, it was “realistic” that not all chargers could be free.

“I totally recognise the right and the necessity of the Town of Cambridge applying a fee for the use of chargers,” Mr Day said.

“There are still free chargers around like at Karrinyup Shopping Centre and the proposed $0.30 per kilowatt hour fee is reasonable as the RAC headquarters charges between 50 cents and 60 cents for Tesla chargers.

“Making the choice to go electric saves you money. I charge off solar at home so essentially there’s no cost, and even when I use power it’s roughly $7 to fill my car.

“It’s not the end of the world — if you can afford a car like this, surely you can afford to pay the $10 or whatever it will be to fill it up.”

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City of Vincent consider electric vehicle charging stations at Chelmsford Road car park

Both the Floreat and Cambridge Street stations have two charging points. The locations allow electric vehicle owners to visit destinations while their vehicle is charging.

The cities of Fremantle, Stirling and Cockburn do not currently charge for their charging points, but the City of Swan charges $0.40/kWh.