Inner West Council to scale back EV charging rollout plan after parking complaints, impacts on cycleways

A plan to roll out 136 kerbside electric vehicle charging points in Sydney’s inner west has been scaled back after residents claimed it could impact street parking spaces and cycling routes.

A plan to roll out kerbside electric vehicle charging points in Sydney’s inner west has been scaled back after residents claimed it could impact street parking spaces and cycling routes.

The Inner West Council has revised plans to install 136 kerbside charging ports across the region after some residents complained it could impact local streetscape and result in fewer places for motorists of combustion engines to park their cars.

While the overall rollout has generated 84 per cent support from residents, feedback from 854 locals has resulted in 14 of the charging points being cut from the rollout plan.

Some of the objections came from residents in Rozelle, where community objections forced one charging point to be removed from Evans Rd.

In Lilyfield, concerns over impacts on a cycleway on Lilyfield Rd resulted in the another proposed charging point being dropped.

The charging points are aimed at encouraging the uptake of electric vehicles.

Other spots removed from the planned rollout include Rowntree St, in Birchgrove, due to “low community support” in the sought-after suburb.

Parking impacts were another point of contention, with some residents claiming the charging points could “attract more EV drivers” to park in their streets and therefore “make it harder for resident parking”.

A petition from residents in Grove St in Dulwich Hill also claimed residents in houses with bedrooms facing the street could experience reduced amenities such as “privacy and sleep” impacts

Charging stations will be installed on local streets.

Council plans show the rollout will require changing parking controls on streets for 81 parking spaces.

The Inner West Council stated the chargers “should not be considered removal of a parking space”, but rather “a transition from one type of parking to another”.

The council says the charging points are in line with its sustainability and net zero policies, as well as federal and state government targets to have electric vehicles account for half of all new vehicles sold in Australia by 2030.

“Around 1000 electric vehicles are currently registered within the council area and during 2023 the total number of electric vehicles registered in the inner west increased by 43 per cent,” the council’s plans stated.

“Projections indicate that a similar growth rate is likely over the next three to five years.”

The rollout has been funded by the NSW Government.

A public feedback report into the rollout of charging stations had some residents calling for residential parking schemes to be put in place to address additional parking demand – a proposal rejected by the council.

Other residents want two-hour charging parking limits to be in force to address parking impacts.

The rollout has also generated support from local groups including Newtown Climate – an organisation that wants Newtown to become Australia’s first inner-city zero emissions community.

Mayor Darcy Byrne said the rollout would assist in the uptake of electric vehicles.

“We’re about to become the community with the best access to public electric vehicle charging anywhere in Australia,” he said.

The charging stations have been funded by the state government and are due to be installed by April next year.

The council says approximately 65 per cent of households in the council area cannot readily charge vehicles on their properties, meaning demand for public charging will “increase significantly over the next few years”.