Paying to charge up is largely considered affordable for electric vehicle (EV) owners in North America, though as zero-emissions automobiles become more and more mainstream, prices for charging are likely to continue increasing too.
Resident EV drivers of Victoria and Saanich, in British Columbia, Canada, are preparing for a new pay-for-power charge of $1 (CAD) per hour, set to begin January 1 for Victoria, and January 4 for Saanich, as reported by The Times Colonist.
The new charges also impose time limits on users, in hopes that the revenue will allow for quicker expansion of the charging infrastructure.
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David Grove, president of the Victoria Electric Vehicle Association on Vancouver Island, thinks the charge is fair.
Grove said, “It was expected and the cost is reasonable.” He continued, “There’s a hope that the revenue will help to build out the charging network quicker and offset some of the costs.”
British Columbia has been working towards major charging network expansion throughout the course of 2020, and more expansion is expected to come in 2021.
The new time limits will largely be enforced by bylaw officers, and on a complaint basis. The municipality’s web portal will let staff see how long individual vehicles have been connected, and those in violation will be slapped with a fine ranging from $20 to $40 for EV owners who overstay their welcome, and up to $175 for non-EVs parked in EV spaces.
In any case, the new charging fees in Victoria and Saanich are not unlike those of other places, in that they have started a bit of controversy – while the world desperately needs to incentivize drivers to go electric, many are questioning whether fees like these, most of which claim to benefit the driver in a roundabout way, actually help, or if they simply slow down the sales of EVs, increasing emissions in the long run.
