Once again, Scotland will lead the electric vehicle charge thanks to a new contract between Transport Scotland and Charge Your Car (CYC). Electric car users across Scotland will be able to plug in to an improved charging network. The £750,000 contract sees CYC appointed to operate the ChargePlace Scotland network of over 550 electric vehicle charge points. CYC will also provide upgraded customer service facilities and a robust fault management system.
Key user benefits of the new contract include:
- New 24-hour / 365-day dedicated ChargePlace Scotland customer helpline.
- Enhanced fault management system.
- Dedicated ChargePlace Scotland network manager based in Scotland.
- New ChargePlace Scotland website, Twitter and Facebook accounts to enhance customer communication.
The ChargePlace Scotland network of publicly available electric vehicle charge points is funded by Transport Scotland and now comprises almost 1,100 bays (equating to over 550 charge points) across Scotland. In the year to 31 March 2016, the network delivered around 1,220,000 kWh of electricity.
Humza Yousaf, Minister for Transport and the Islands, said: “The Scottish Government has set a clear vision of freeing Scotland’s towns, cities and communities from the damaging emissions of fossil-fuelled vehicles by 2050. Our aim is to encourage more individuals and businesses to make the switch to electric vehicles. The Switched on Scotland roadmap recognises the importance of robust and reliable charging infrastructure and 24/7 customer support. This is why we are continuing to invest in growing and operating the network across the country. The network operator has a key role to play in this process and I look forward to working with Charge Your Car to deliver a robust and reliable charging network along with the promotion of electro-mobility in Scotland.”
The procurement process attracted interest from across the transport, technology and energy sectors, culminating in four parties being invited to tender. The competition had a strong focus on quality, with a 65 per cent weighting in the evaluation. Having won the tender, CYC will now develop its detailed mobilisation plan and will contact all existing hosts and users.
The ongoing development of the Charge Place Scotland network reflects the actions contained within the Switched on Scotland roadmap. The roadmap sets out a number of actions to realise the widespread adoption of plug-in vehicles in Scotland.
CYC is one the UK’s first open access charge point network operators, offering clients across the UK nationwide resource and experience.
Calvey Taylor-Haw, Chief Executive Officer of Charge Your Car, added: “We are immensely pleased to be able to build on CYC’s and Transport Scotland’s hard work over the last three years in establishing a successful charging network right across Scotland, from the Borders to the Hebrides. We will work together and further invest to extend the reach and quality of the network as we move from emerging technology, through mass mainstream adoption of electric transport. CYC continues to expand, and winning this contract to run the Scottish network gives us the opportunity to further improve our helpline and the quality customer service for which we have become renowned.”
Under the CYC network, charge points can incur a charge, which is set by the charge point owner – not CYC. The vast majority of CYC networked charge points in Scotland are free to use. The improved network will be a major boon for business and individuals wishing to adopt zero or ultra-low emission vehicles.
Source; Charge Your Car
