New electric charge points heading to Bexley

Public charging points for electric cars and vans are being installed across Bexley.

The move is part of the borough’s commitment to protecting and enhancing the green environment for current and future generations.

The council’s new partner, Ubitricity, will be maintaining these new charge points using a combination of bollards and street lamppost charges built into existing street furniture on residential roads.

The charge points, which take as little as two hours to install, will be deployed on residential streets across Bexley – with at least two per ward within the borough and will charge at speeds of up to 5kW.

Councillor Richard Diment, Cabinet Member for Places, said: “Installing these chargers using existing lampposts means that there is less physical infrastructure to install and disruption will be kept to a minimum, keeping our street green without cluttering them.

“We are excited to work with Ubitricity and look forward to expanding our network of charging points across the borough."

£18.5m to transform Croydon town centre A

project to transform Croydon town centre and restore pride is set to receive £18.5m of Government funding.

It follows a successful bid by Croydon Council to the Levelling Up Fund, under round three.

The council applied to the Department for Levelling Up Housing and Communities (DLUHC) for the Reconnecting Croydon scheme, which will see six infrastructure and public realm projects funded to reconnect and revitalise Croydon’s streetscape.

The vision for the project is to ‘Reconnect, Refresh, Revitalise and Regenerate’ the town centre, as part of Executive Mayor Jason Perry’s priority for the wider regeneration of Croydon town centre.

The projects will provide improved connections throughout the town centre, so residents and visitors will be able to travel more easily through safer, greener and more pleasant routes.

The projects will cover the South End restaurant quarter, East Croydon station, West Croydon station and Old Town and Croydon Minster.

Toby Butler, UK Managing Director of Ubitricity, added:

“The future of mobility is electric and the multitude of EVs taking to the roads must have access to convenient charging infrastructure close to home.

“We’re thrilled to add Bexley to our list of council partners across the UK whose trust has helped Ubitricity become the UK’s leading charge point provider and look forward to helping support their residents in the switch to EV.”

Central to the bid is the delivery of a new civic square for the Fairfield cultural complex, connecting Queen’s Gardens and Surrey Street Market.

Executive Mayor of Croydon, Jason Perry, said: “I’m delighted we have been successful in the Levelling Up Fund, round three.

“Our impressive bid submitted at round two has been assessed as high quality and ready to deliver.

“This will be a huge boost for Croydon town centre and will form part of my determination to restoring pride in our community, reconnect and regenerate Croydon.”