July 28th, 2024EV charge points to be repaired soon

An ugly spate of vandalism may have put Ballarat’s electric vehicle charging stations near Big W out of action for at least another month but it’s now expected that the well-used charge points will be back and operating from next month.

The RACV operates the Curtis Street charging points near Big W, and energy general manager Greg Edye has apologised for the inconvenience for residents and travellers.

The charger screens have been damaged and Mr Edye said in a statement that parts required for their repair are currently unavailable because the “company who provides them has gone into receivership”.

However, he said they will be upgrading and installing new chargers as well as CCTV for additional security next month.

It’s not the first time the heavily used Curtis Street EV charging station has been unusable because of vandalism since opening in the first quarter of 2020.

The charging points were also temporarily unable to be used in August and September last year and residents voiced concern over how long it takes for the stations to be repaired with local EV users calling for improved regulation of charge point maintenance.

The next closest RACV chargers are at the Creswick Goldfields Resort or drivers can use the Plugshare app to see locations of all public chargers, Mr Edye said.

When installed in 2020, Chargefox, who runs the software said the location was ideal because of the proximity to public bathrooms, shops and places to eat.

“This kind of vandalism is particularly mindless as those who engage in it are actually damaging themselves,” an EV driver who had been a regular user of the infrastructure told The Local.

“Efforts to counteract climate change, including the shift to EVs, are obviously in the best interests of everyone who lives on this planet.”