The City of Delta is going to make its electric vehicle (EV) charging stations more accessible.
Delta staff recently updated members of the city’s Mobility and Accessibility Committee of planned accessibility improvements to stations, advising that the city received a grant to install an additional 20 Level 2 chargers and one DC Fast Charger.
The improvements include longer charging cables at DC Fast Charger stations, pedestals installed at pavement level, shorter pedestals with lower handles and screens and flat, paved surfaces at all charging stations. Also, one stall per charging station will be required to have wider dimensions.
The city recently issued a request for proposals for the installation of the 21 city-supplied EV charging stations.
The city is also working with BC Hydro to increase the number of DC Fast Chargers.
BC Hydro in December announced that it had increased the number of chargers at its EV fast charging site at the South Delta Recreation Centre with the addition of three new 100-kilowatt charging units. Those are in addition to two already at the centre, which were to be re-located to parking level to increase accessibility.
BC Hydro last year announced that as part of its Electrification Plan, all its new fast charging sites are to designed to be barrier-free. Each location will now feature wider parking stalls, paved access, lowered chargers, wider protective bollards, improved lighting and better signage.
BC Hydro said it is encouraging its hardware vendors to continue improving features on its equipment to make it more accessible including lowering screens and cable management systems.
