The City of Victoria is installing its first fast-charging stations for electric vehicles on Store Street near the Johnson Street bridge.
On Wednesday, the city announced it is working with B.C. Hydro to install two direct-current fast chargers at the south end of Store Street, between Johnson and Pandora. The chargers are expected to be ready for use by April.
Drivers will have to pay a fee to use the chargers and will be required to limit their stays to 40 minutes. Parking restrictions will ensure that only electric vehicles that are charging are parked in the stalls.
Fast chargers can deliver about a 100-kilometre range in about 30 minutes, depending on the vehicle.
The Store Street station will allow EV drivers to recharge during a quick trip to downtown.
The city owns and operates 13 chargers in its parkades.
There are also six chargers on Broad Street.
Mayor Lisa Helps noted that Greater Victoria has the highest percentage of EV sales in Canada, and the fast-charging station will help support the transition to zero-emission vehicles.
B.C will require all new light-duty vehicles that are sold or leased to be zero-emission by 2040.
Funding for the chargers and installation has been provided in part by Natural Resources Canada’s Electric Vehicle and Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Deployment Initiative and the CleanBC Go Electric Program, in collaboration with B.C. Hydro.
