People in Chilliwack will have more options for charging their electric vehicle (EV) with four new EV stations that are being built.

Funding for the new EV stations will come from the CleanBC Go Electric Public Charger program.

“B.C. now has more than 60,000 EVs on the road,” said Bruce Ralston, Minister of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation. “With the highest reported uptake rates of EVs in North America, we’re building out the infrastructure needed to support the increasing number of EV drivers. This support for EV charging not only moves us toward our CleanBC goals, but it also helps EV drivers save on fuel costs – about $1,800 every year for the average B.C. driver.”

The City of Chilliwack is receiving $110,000 from the Province’s CleanBC Go Electric Public Charger program to install four new EV charging stations in the city-owned parking lot just north of Five Corners, allowing more EV drivers in the community and post-pandemic travellers to charge up. Work on the new charging stations is expected to begin in October 2021.

“We’re expanding B.C.’s electric vehicle charging network through CleanBC to make adoption of EVs more convenient and secure for people and businesses,” said George Heyman, Minister of Environment and Climate Change Strategy. “These new charging stations add to an extensive network of stations in communities across British Columbia. They build on our government’s support to make zero-emission vehicles more affordable, accessible and practical so we can reduce pollution and meet our climate and clean economy goals.”

B.C. is home to one of the largest public charging networks in Canada. At the end of 2020, there were over 2,500 public charging stations in B.C.

“In British Columbia, our government is working to protect our environment and tackle climate change in many different ways through CleanBC,” said Dan Coulter, MLA for Chilliwack. “These new charging stations will make it more convenient for electric vehicle owners in Chilliwack and will encourage others to make the switch.”

“People across British Columbia are committed to make more environmentally responsible choices where they can," said Kelli Paddon, MLA for Chilliwack-Kent. “Our government is making it easier and more affordable for people to do so by improving access to electric vehicle charging stations.”

With $7 million from the Province announced in September 2020 for the CleanBC Go Electric Public Charger program, Indigenous Nations, local governments, communities and businesses can apply for support to open new fast-charging stations. Applicants can receive up to 50% of the cost of equipment and installation to a maximum of $80,000 per station. Increased rebates of up to 90% of project costs to a maximum of $130,000 per station are also available for Indigenous-owned fast-charging stations. The program is being delivered by the Fraser Basin Council on behalf of the Province.

“As a signatory of the B.C. Climate Action Charter, the City of Chilliwack is committed to reducing emissions and working towards a more sustainable future,” said Ken Popove, mayor of Chilliwack. “We are grateful the Province shares this vision and hope to see more electric vehicle users in Chilliwack once this project is complete.”  

In addition to funding for the expansion of the EV public charging network, a range of rebates for new EVs and home and workplace EV-charging infrastructure are available to British Columbians through the CleanBC Go Electric program.

The Zero-Emission Vehicles Act requires automakers to meet increasing annual levels of zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) sales to reach 10% of new light-duty vehicle sales by 2025, 30% by 2030 and 100% by 2040. B.C. is on its way to exceeding the 2025 targets with light-duty EV sales representing 9.4% of all new light-duty vehicle sales in B.C. in 2020.

CleanBC is a pathway to a more prosperous, balanced and sustainable future. It supports government’s commitment to climate action to meet B.C.’s emission targets and build a cleaner, stronger economy for everyone.

Learn More:

To learn more about the CleanBC Go Electric Public Charger program, visit: https://pluginbc.ca/publiccharger/

To learn more about the suite of CleanBC Go Electric programming, visit: www.gov.bc.ca/zeroemissionvehicles

To learn more about the light-duty ZEV infrastructure study, visit:
https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/industry/electricity-alternative-energy/transportation-energies/clean-transportation-policies-programs/clean-energy-vehicle-program/dcfc-program

To learn more about Fraser Basin Council, visit: https://www.fraserbasin.bc.ca/

To learn more about the CleanBC plan, visit: https://cleanbc.gov.bc.ca/