Suffolk County Council, in partnership with charge point operator (CPO) Believ, will deliver around 6,000 new public electric vehicle (EV) charge points across the county to support residents make the transition to EVs.
The county council has made this project possible with a successful £5.3m bid to the government’s Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) fund, which supports local authorities to plan and deliver charging infrastructure for residents without off-street parking. This roll-out uses a proportion of that funding along with over £16m funding from CPO, Believ.
Suffolk County Council is the first local authority in England to both award their LEVI main funding tender, and subsequently sign a contract with an operator.
Beginning in summer 2025, thousands will be installed on residential streets, with many locations suggested by local residents following a survey last year.
The county council has also worked closely with district and borough councils and communities to identify further suitable sites.
The majority will be on-street bollard-style units, suitable for long-stay or overnight charging. Drivers will be able to benefit from an overnight off-peak tariff, and a dedicated resident’s tariff which features discounted charging at all times.
Public car parks will also see a number of rapid and ultra-rapid charge point installations, allowing for quicker charging.
Councillor Philip Fairclough-Mutton, Suffolk County Council’s Cabinet Member for Environment, Communities and Equality said:
“25% of Suffolk households don’t have a driveway and park on their street. This is a significant barrier for people who would like an EV, as they have no convenient way to charge.
“We are providing a solution by installing charge points on their street, or very nearby. Our ambition is to provide them with a public charge point within a 5-10 minute walk or wheel.
“There are around 1.5 million EVs on the country’s roads and we need thousands of new public charge points in Suffolk, and we need them quickly – around 5,400 by 2030, and 12,000 by 2040. Working with Believ, our new installations will bring a significant reduction to those numbers.
“The benefits of EV ownership go beyond helping residents and businesses to reduce their carbon emissions and their impact on climate change. It means together we can contribute to Suffolk’s Climate Emergency Plan, improving Suffolk’s air quality and enabling us to live healthier lives.”
Believ will install a minimum of 2,100 on-street charge points and over 400 car park charge points by the end of 2026, increasing to a total of approximately 6,000 throughout the project as EV demand increases. Believ will also support with the installation of fast and rapid charging infrastructure at key locations, building on the county council’s successful ‘Plug In Suffolk’ project which launched in 2018.
Guy Bartlett, Believ CEO, said:
“We’re delighted to have been awarded the opportunity to rollout such a significant number of charge points across Suffolk.
“It will make a real difference to local EV drivers and give others the confidence to go electric, helping to support our mission to deliver cleaner air for all. Through this project we forecast the removal of nearly 140,000 tons of emissions by the end of the initial phase in late 2026*.
“As one of the UK’s best-backed privately funded charge point operators investing over £16m in the Suffolk area, Believ is well placed to support Suffolk deliver its zero carbon transport ambitions.”
Believ and Zapmap not only share a live data partnership which allows users to see the live status of Believ charge points at all times, but users can search and pay for charging with ease, right within the Zapmap app.
