An Aussie first in Lane Cove

Published on 22 December 2022

A car parked next to a power pole with an EV charger attached to it

Lane Cove Council is one of 11 councils in NSW to trial electric vehicle chargers on power poles.

Local street side power poles will be turned into electric vehicle (EV) charging stations under an Australian first trial being rolled out across the Sydney and Hunter regions of NSW.

It's supported by the federal government's Australian Renewable Energy Agency with a $871,000 grant.

The trial will involve 50 street-side locations across all of the LGAs, with each station connected to the overhead electricity from 100% GreenPower.

Smart metering and data intelligence provider Intellihub will lead the project, working with Lane Cove Council to investigate suitable locations for the Schneider 7.4kW EV chargers. EV drivers will be able to pay for their charging through an app, but parking will be free.

Locations being considered include:

Phoenix St, Lane Cove
Little Street, Lane Cove
Longueville Road, Lane Cove
Greenwich Road, Greenwich
Oxley Street, St Leonards
Cnr Oxley and Nicholson Street, St Leonards
Mindarie Street, Lane Cove North

Mayor Andrew Zbik said Lane Cove Council's sustainability ethos supported the uptake of EVs.

"Council leads by example having earlier this year switched to 100% renewable energy in our facilities and street lights.

"Council has one of the largest local government charging networks with 15 free and 2 paid EV charging stations:

8 at The Canopy car park (including 2 paid fast charging)
4 in the Little Street car park
5 at Market Square Car Park

In early 2023, 4 free and 2 paid EV charging stations will open in Council's new car park at St Leonards."

"Council's own fleet of cars includes 3 EVs as a pilot project, with plans to further expand this under development.

"We're at an important tipping point for the adoption of EVs and Council can support our community through increased access to charging."

The Lane Cove/St Leonards parking study earlier this year examined current and future parking needs, including the recommendation that an EV parking strategy be developed. See more details here.

2021 census data shows 8,750 people or 56.7% of the Lane Cove LGA are unit dwellers.

Visit www.lanecove.nsw.gov.au/parking for details, costs and parking times.

Find out more about the project .

A maroon car parked on the street next to a power pole with an EV charger attached to it. A park is in the background.