More needed to encourage electric vehicles - Tesch
More should be done on the Peninsula to encourage the take-up of electric vehicles, according to Member for Gosford Ms Liesl Tesch.
She said that the State Government planned only to install four fast charging plugs on the Peninsula and not increase that number before 2026.
"As part of the NSW Electric vehicle Fast Charging Infrastructure Master Plan, only four plugs for electric vehicles will be installed by next year, remaining the same until at least 2026," she said.
"For the greater Gosford area, only four plugs will be installed next year, increasing to merely seven plugs by 2026."
Ms Tesch said the small town in New Zealand where she spent a part of her childhood already had multiple publicly-available electric vehicle chargers for a population of around 250 people."
"Electric vehicles are the future.
"It is what is necessary to address the climate crisis, the energy crisis, and to ensure that Australia doesn't become the dumping ground for old, retired, petrol-guzzling vehicles as the rest of the world electrifies."
"It is not a matter of 'if'.
"It is a matter of when our transport system will become electric.
"It is important that the rollout is efficient, effective, and leaves no one behind.
"While the rest of the developed world advances towards a largely petrol-free future for car transportation, Australia's move to building a reliable and extensive infrastructure network to support electric vehicle uptake is lagging."
By comparison, Ms Tesch said: "The Biden Administration plans to spend $174 billion to drive EV uptake.
"Norway plans to end all sales of new diesel and petrol vehicles by 2025, and the UK intends to do the same by 2030.
"The Perrottet Government needs stronger targets and more ambitious numbers of new plugs to support locals who want to switch to electric vehicles.
"It is really striking that currently there is one local public charger in Killcare, and another all the way up in Tuggerah."
SOURCE:
Media release, 8 Jul 2022
Liesl Tesch, Member for Gosford