The charging point outside the station was to provide both private cars and taxis a place to recharge their cars.
The facility, which cost £20,000 plus maintenance to install, was paid for by a Government grant following a Kent-wide bid to the Office for Low Emission Vehicles [OLEV] and comes as the Government hopes to phase out petrol and diesel cars by 2030.
The ‘rapid’ charging point, which is next to the main taxi rank outside the station, was installed to complement the EV chargers in several of the Borough Council’s car parks in Tunbridge Wells and Southborough, but this was the first kerbside charging point.
It was installed by Kent County Council [KCC] on July 1, yet vandals struck on July 12 – less than two weeks from when KCC switched the device on – and broke a connector, putting the charger out of commission.
TWBC say they are now waiting for KCC to come and repair the unit.
Cllr Matt Bailey, who is in charge of sustainability at the Council, said that while he wasn’t certain the damage was deliberate or accidental ‘It’s disappointing that the new EV charger was damaged less than two weeks after first being unveiled’.
He added: “The damage is an example of the many issues we need to think about when rolling out EV facilities.
“The chargers are an expensive piece of kit that will be left unguarded right next to moving vehicles, so they will be exposed to many risks and will cost significant amounts of money to repair and maintain.”
