Coquitlam
Port Coquitlam
Port Moody
Daycare in Blue Mountain Park wants to stay there
A big bike race and bigger, family-friendly housing, too
Police board appointee steps down over conflict concerns
Page 7
Page 9
Page 11
There’s more at
t H U r S D aY
|
J U LY 4
|
2019
tricitynews.com
Love My City week begins + Help find suspects in home invasion + Canada Day and Golden Spike pix (also on page 17)
U P, U P a n D ( g a S P ) a W a Y
eLeCtriC VeHiCLeS
Popularity of EVs is charging, cities act Coquitlam and other cities are ramping up EV infrastructure Diane StranDberg dstrandberg@tricitynews.com
First of two parts
Mario Bartel, a Tri-City News reporter and photographer, heard that people on social media were calling the multi-use path along the newly redone — but still steep — Gatensbury Road in Port Moody the “Gatensbury Gasp,” so he set out on his bike to find out for himself. See story, page 19. STEFAN LABBé/THE TRI-CITY NEWS
Thanks for following us on:
7 1 1 37 8
for
0 11901
$
Electric vehicle charging stations are cropping up like dandelions in spring in the Tri-Cities as the EVs become an integral part of the driving landscape. And as B.C. becomes a heavy adopter of EVs, more charging stations are likely to appear — many of them installed by cities, with the investment made by taxpayers but paid back by users. “I see this as the way of the future,” said Jozsef Dioszeghy, Coquitlam’s general manager engineering and public works. This week, Coquitlam coun-
cil approved the expenditure of $200,000 for the purchase of six dual-port, level 2 charging stations. But while the initial investment will give EV owners more options for charging, they won’t get the service for free. Users will pay $1 per hour for the first two hours followed by $5 for each additional hour after that. The idea is to encourage turnover and for fees to pay back the city’s initial investment over seven to 10 years, Dioszeghy said. Coquitlam is ramping up its EV infrastructure as more drivers are expected to purchase the vehicles to avoid paying for gas and to reduce carbon emissions. There are currently 18,000 EVs in B.C., with 350,000 expected on the roads by 2030, according to BC Hydro. see
PUBLIC AND PRIVATE, page 3
4 1815
.ca
COQUITLAM
300-100 Schoolhouse St
604.526.2272