Queensland’s Bruce Highway unveiled its first electric charge point at the Cairns Esplanade, which marks the beginning of the state’s efforts to increase the uptake of electric vehicles as part of a transition to a lower emissions.
The Bruce Highway runs for 1700km from Cairns to Brisbane and is the biggest traffic carrier in Queensland.
Another two charge points will be installed in the Rockhampton CBD and the Gold Coast Airport and are the forerunner of a series of charging points that will form the State’s ‘Electric Super Highway’. It will be the world’s longest electric vehicle superhighway in one state.
The Cairns charging station is a fast – charger and is the first of many along the coast to be installed making it possible to drive an electric vehicle from the far north to the state’s southern border.
Green energy purchased through green energy credits or offsets will be used to for the fast-charging stations. EVs can provide not only a reduced fuel cost for Queenslanders, but an environmentally-friendly transport option, particularly when charged from renewable energy. Ergon Energy’s Townsville trial of the iMiev in 2013/14 found them inexpensive with running costs under $4 per 100km.
In preparation for Queensland’s electric super highway, Ergon mapped its network in 2016 to identify potential charging point sites.
Around 100 sites with surplus network capacity were identified and is the basis for the electric super highway.
It’s an ambitious project and fits with the state government’s vision to facilitate the increase in the uptake of electric vehicles as part of a transition to a lower emissions future.
Queensland is not the only state rolling out EV charging points. Western Australia is rolling out 70 stations in Perth and regional areas and Adelaide City Council will install 40 throughout the city in 2017.
