The charging points are powered by guaranteed renewable energy and offer enough power to fully charge a vehicle in just 3 to 4 hours.
The project's current stage has seen Network Rail install 160 charging points in Reading, 111 in Manchester, 84 in Edinburgh, 56 in Leeds and 41 in Welwyn Garden City.
By March 2024 10% of car parking spaces at Network Rail-managed car parks will have electric vehicle charging points installed which works out at around 779 spaces!
Travelling by rail is already the greenest form of public transport and this step marks another achievement in Network Rail's commitment to a low-emission railway, making sure that rail is environmentally friendly, resilient to climate change whilst being able to offer excellent service into the future.
The brand new Compleo charging points can be found with green parking bays and passengers can pay for what they need easily and quickly using the APCOA Connect app.
Jo Lewington, Network Rail's Chief Environment & Sustainability Officer, said:
“As part of our wider Environmental Sustainability Strategy, we're working towards delivering a low-emission railway and aiming to reach net-zero emissions by 2045 in Scotland and by 2050 in the rest of Britain.
“Supporting the move to electric vehicles is a key part of that. We hope that by providing affordable, efficient and reliable charging points we can encourage more electric vehicles onto the road and help promote healthier air in and around our stations.”
Mark Tarry, Network Rail's Supply Chain Operations Director, said:
“The Decarbonisation Programme Team continues to deliver Network Rail's decarbonisation ambitions. The team are making a real difference putting passengers first and supporting the country's net-zero ambitions”.a
Kim Challis, APCOA's Regional Managing Director for UK&I said:
“We're really pleased to have developed this solution in conjunction with Compleo to enable charging authentication and easy payment for Network Rail's EV customers. This solution also provides a significant step towards our sustainability strategy.”
BETTER TO Encourage BUS use rather than cars-even electric cars cause congestion
780 charging points across the country. Now, remind me how many train journeys are made per day? Plus someone parks their car in the charging point and it could be there all day – or all week!