Surrey City Council is moving forward on a new by-law which would require all new gas stations to include alternative fuel sources such as a level-three electric vehicle charging station, compressed natural gas, hydrogen or propane.
“We want to promote and advance clean technology by building the necessary infrastructure to support alternative fuel vehicles,” says Mayor Dianne Watts, adding the by-law would be a first for Canada. “Surrey residents spend over a billion dollars a year on energy, with the majority of money being spent on transportation. We want to encourage people to choose alternative fuel vehicles, but in order to do that, we need to make the refuelling and recharging stations more accessible.”
She adds new service stations will likely be located in future growth areas such as South Port Kells, Clayton and Grandview, which are not currently served by a gas station. The new by-law would allow off-site installation of electric vehicle charging stations, such as at a recreation or shopping centre, in order to make it more convenient to charge for longer periods of time.
Over the past year, the City has consulted various stakeholder groups to gather feedback on the initiative, and further consultation, including a public hearing, will be scheduled.
The City of Surrey is one of only four cities in the country to receive the prestigious Fleet Gold Rating from the Fraser Basin Council, and has implemented a number of additional green fleet initiatives, including:
· Diversifying its fleet with hybrid, hydrogen, electric, and compressed natural gas vehicles
· Becoming the first major Canadian city to host an electric vehicle charging station at City Hall
· Becoming the only Canadian city to host three hydrogen fuelling stations
· Creating Canada’s first full-scale CNG municipal waste collection fleet
· Moving forward with plans to establish an organics biofuel facility that will process residential and commercial kitchen and yard waste into fuel, which would then be used to power vehicles, including the City’s garbage trucks
For more information, please visit http://www.surrey.ca/energyshift/
