Thwaites Village Hall has become the first in South Copeland to install two community funded Electric Vehicle (EV) chargepoints as they place themselves on the cutting edge of the future of transport.

The sockets are the first publicly accessible chargepoints to be activated in South Copeland and the installation marks a huge step forward for residents who may have been considering when they will switch to an EV.

The people from Thwaites Village Hall are eager to welcome new visitors to the area who otherwise might not have been able to drive through as well as to provide a welcome service for the drivers who live in the surrounding area. They believe that the new infrastructure will help build confidence for drivers to visit the beautiful area in the knowledge a charging point is easily accessible.

Chair of Thwaites Village Hall David Savage said:

“The chargepoints are installed by community benefit society Charge My Street. This is part of an ongoing project to install EV chargepoints throughout Cumbria funded through a community share offer as well as funding from Innovate UK, the UK’s innovation agency.  We have welcomed this opportunity to be part of a growing and reliable infrastructure for electric vehicles.

“Because the chargepoints are funded through these means, the installation did not cost the village hall any money at all”.

Director of Charge My Street Daniel Heery said:

“It’s been fantastic to work with Thwaites Village Hall for this installation. They have shown a real desire to do something for their community and that’s been obvious throughout.

“So many of the large charging companies have been focused on installing chargepoints at motorway service stations on in big cities. This completely neglects those of us who live in villages or in terraced housing who just want somewhere to park an EV to charge overnight.

The more chargepoints like these we get installed in communities like this, the more people will be able to switch to an EV from their petrol/diesel car, cutting carbon emissions and saving themselves money.”

In 2030, the sale of new petrol and diesel cars will be banned and people will need to use alternative transport instead. For many who live in rural communities, a car is the only viable option for commuting so a robust charging infrastructure is a vital part of Cumbria’s future.

Anyone wishing to suggest another site that would be a good host for a chargepoint should go to www.chargemystreet.co.uk/host

This project is possible thanks to funding from Innovate UK and the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles.