Cameron Dick.
In an Australian-first pilot project, Tropical North Queensland will soon host a free electric vehicle (EV) ‘road trip’ trial with a network of EV charging stations at six popular tourist destinations.
The green light for the Queensland Government and RACQ pilot project, which will see AC charging stations installed across the tropical north for the year-long free trial, has been announced by state development, manufacturing, infrastructure and planning minister Cameron Dick.
“The six chosen sites are Paronella Park, Herberton Historic Village, Coffee Works Mareeba, Skyrail Rainforest Cableway, Hartleys Crocodile Adventures and the Mossman Gorge centre,” member for Cairns Michael Healy says.
Work on the EV charging sites is expected to be completed in September.
“It is expected that most, if not all, sites will continue to offer free EV charging once the trial has ended,” Healy says.
Dr Rebecca Michael.
“Electric vehicle ownership is gaining momentum, and residential and commercial buildings in Queensland, as well as public infrastructure will need to keep up with the technological advancement.”
Member for Cook Cynthia Lui says Queensland has been leading the transition with fast charging stations from Coolangatta to Cairns.
“We want to make it easy for the increasing number of EV drivers from all over Australia to spend time in beautiful Tropical North Queensland.”
Member for Barron River Craig Crawford says destination chargers allow EV drivers to top-up during road trips.
“The EV chargers at these sites will deliver between 3.6kW and 7kW (AC) to recharge vehicles to give around 100km to 200km of charging at each site,” he says.
“It means long-distance travel to the Cairns region by EV is much easier due to access to fast and ultra-fast charging using the 50kW (DC) fast chargers along the Queensland Electric Super Highway or the 350kW DC ultra-fast RACQ charger at Toombul Shopping Centre.”
RACQ public policy head Dr Rebecca Michael says these charging stations will allow EV users to get about the region and back home again along the Queensland Electric Super Highway through to Brisbane, or beyond to Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne and Adelaide via the Chargefox network.
“We’ve seen many advancements in the electric vehicle market with a wider range of more affordable cars becoming available. It’s certainly an exciting time, but it hasn’t come without some challenges too.
“We know ‘range anxiety’ is a big fear for those considering making the switch to a low emissions vehicle, and a comprehensive and connected electric vehicle charging network is essential to calming these concerns.”
