Vancouver City Council Approves EV Bylaw

New EV Bylaw a good change for Vancouver

City of Vancouver Counselors have spoken: A new EV bylaw states that all parking stalls within new multi-residential buildings built in Vancouver will have to be electric vehicle (EV) ready. This is up from the 20% that was previously required for new multi-residential builds. The only stalls that may be exempt are visitor stalls.

It makes economic sense to put in EV ready parking stalls early: it only costs roughly $300 to install the required infrastructure when the building construction begins, compared to the hefty $3,300 required for retrofit upgrades.

$300 to install infrastructure now, than $3,300 for retrofit upgrades later

This EV bylaw is in line with City of Vancouver’s Electric Vehicle Ecosystem Strategy, which is a small section within the Greenest City Action Plan, with the goal of being 100% renewably powered by 2050. Installing EV stalls may be required, but submetering them in British Columbia (BC) would be smart. By submetering EV stalls, developers can properly prepare property managers for simple cost allocation.

Developers seem to be ready to take on the initiative: in 2014, 17,000 total new EV stalls were created within Vancouver, which surpassed the minimum 20% that was required, which would have been 11,000 stalls.

With gas prices rising higher and higher, it makes sense for consumers to shift to full EV cars as well. Studies have shown that electric vehicle sales have been steadily increasing for a while now: there has been a 70% increase year over year from 2011, which then increases demand for EV charging stations.

Metering will be essential to measure individual EV stalls to ensure fair and accurate cost allocation

Interested in EV charging for your next construction? Metering will be essential to measure individual EV stalls to ensure fair and accurate cost allocation for the energy consumed. Look for systems integrators like QMC, who can provide integrated solutions between your hardware, software, and reporting for submetering in BC. Take a look at our brochure here for more information.

Looking to get started with EV charging? QMC can help. Contact us today for more information.

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