Arun motorists could face £70 fines for misusing electric vehicle charging points

If approved, the new rules would apply to off-street car parks operated by Arun District Council and could see fines of between £50 and £70 handed out.

Drivers will fall foul of the rules if they park a non-electric vehicle in an EV space but even electric vehicle owners need to be mindful of how they use the charging points.

The proposed rules say a vehicle must be charging when using an EV point and it must be moved once charging is complete.

If approved, it is thought that the rules could benefit electric vehicle owners by making charging points more readily available.

A consultation on the proposed fines was approved by ADC’s environment committee on Thursday (March 10).

Councillor Paul Bicknell (Con, Angmering and Findon) questioned the plans as charging times can vary depending on the user.

“You could have somebody on a slow charge there all day, still charging, and somebody on a fast charge in and out within two hours,” he said.

But council officers said they were keen to ensure that users do not ‘leave the vehicle there all day’.

“We want to make sure that the bays are used by people who are charging their vehicles and, once they charge their vehicles, to allow other people the opportunity to go into those bays,” they said.

Plans for more EV charging points

Several councillors wanted to know how many EV charging points will be coming to Arun and when and where they will be installed.

Paul English (Con, Felpham East) said it is ‘imperative’ to install charging points that are ‘fit for the future’.

Although exact numbers haven’t been provided, there is a plan for ADC to install more charging points in the coming year in partnership with West Sussex County Council.

It is hoped that this will create a ‘county wide network of charging points’.

In Arun, the first charging points are expected to be installed during the second half of 2022.

It is hoped that this will help to meet demand as the number of electric vehicles is expected to rise.

Numbers expected to rise

Electric vehicles form a key part of the Government’s strategy to be carbon neutral by 2050.

Sales of petrol and diesel engine cars will be banned from 2040 but a consultation is under way to bring this forward to 2035 or even 2032.

More information about the project to create an EV charging network across West Sussex can be found here: https://www.connectedkerb.com/west-sussex-chargepoint-network

A consultation is also under way to find out where residents would like to see EV charging points and you can have your say here: https://share.hsforms.com/1MqiwnTYjRLK2GIW9Xy0fTw2rzk7?hsCtaTracking=62e468d6-548f-4239-8c76-522f7b5bac03%7C48868f44-70f0-4772-b862-ab92e19c0fd9

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