THE City of Surrey has been a regional leader in electric vehicle (EV) adoption for use by residents and businesses, and with Council’s endorsement of the City’s Electric Vehicle Strategy at its Monday’s meeting, a framework has been put in place to accelerate and expand EV use in Surrey.
“Forty-seven per cent of Surrey’s greenhouse gas emissions come from the transportation sector,” said Surrey Mayor Doug McCallum. “The good news is that the growing popularity of electric vehicles will help reduce emissions. Roughly 10% of car sales in BC are EV’s and that number will continue to increase as more new car buyers make the move to electric vehicles. That’s why Surrey has developed an EV Strategy to ensure we stay at the forefront of this green energy movement by encouraging and facilitating the use of zero-emission vehicles in our City.”
The Surrey EV Strategy is guided by the following five principles:
- Support Home and Workplace Charging
- Expand Access to Public Charging
- Accelerate Individual EV Adoption
- Accelerate Fleet EV Adoption
- Lead by Example
Surrey currently has 37 Level 2 charging stations at 15 City facilities along with 2 DC fast charging locations. Council has recently approved an additional 40 Level 2 charging stations and 3 DC fast charging stations at 12 City facilities. For new building developments in Surrey, 100% of residential and 20% of commercial parking spaces must be EV-ready.
“Our EV Strategy is proof that Surrey wants to be the leader in green energy initiatives not just for the region, but for the country,” said Councillor Allison Patton, Chair of the Agriculture, Environment and Investment Committee. “Aside from encouraging our residents and businesses to adopt electric vehicles, the City is also taking steps to curb its carbon footprint by transitioning our light and medium vehicle fleet to 100% zero-emission vehicles.”
More information on Surrey’s EV Strategy can be found here.
Click here to download an EV charging station video message from Mayor McCallum.
Click here to download a video message from Councillor Patton regarding upcoming EV projects in Surrey.
