TRANSPORT Minister Eamon Ryan has been asked to accelerate the roll-out of Electric Vehicle (EV) Charge Points in Limerick City to meet increasing demand.
The call came from Limerick Fine Gael TD Kieran O’Donnell who said the latest Government estimates show that the number of EV on-street charging points to be provided by the end of the year is lagging well behind the targets for increased sales of electric vehicles.
“Nationally, the number of grant-aided electric vehicle purchases is expected to rise from 6,000 in 2021 to 18,000 this year and yet the number of charging points is only expected to increase from 400 to 800.
Deputy O’Donnell, who is chairman of the Oireachtas Transport Committee, has also engaged with Limerick City and County Council on the matter. They have told him they are currently in the process of tendering for expertise in the development of a strategy for EV charging point Infrastructure.
“At a Transport Committee hearing earlier this month, I told Minister Ryan about the need for greater provision and access to EV charge points in Limerick to meet the increasing demand and sales of electric vehicles.
“Currently Limerick City and County has 22 EV charge point locations and 53 charging slots, provided by the ESB and private operators.
“There are 14 locations in the city with 28 charging slots available while there are eight locations with 25 charging slots available in the county.
“Although they are a very welcome service, their roll-out must be accelerated both in terms of additional locations and numbers of EV charging points,” Deputy O’Donnell added.
