Residents in Burnham-On-Sea and Highbridge are being encouraged this week to help Somerset Council decide where new electric vehicle chargers should be installed across the two towns.
It follows Burnham-On-Sea.com’s recent report that Somerset has secured access to £3.78million of government funding to roll out more than 1,600 low‑powered EV chargepoints across the county as part of a major expansion of public charging infrastructure.
The Burnham and Highbridge Green Team has welcomed the investment and is urging local people to put forward suggested locations, particularly in streets where residents do not have driveways.
The group’s Ganesh Gudka told Burnham-On-Sea.com: “Lower‑powered chargepoints are much less expensive than rapid chargers and provide a realistic option for car owners who do not have a driveway at their home, allowing them to take advantage of Battery Electric Vehicles which are cheaper and cleaner to run.”
The new installations will include 3.5kW single‑socket bollards and 7kW dual‑socket chargepoints, with Somerset Council planning to use existing lamp‑column cabling where possible to reduce disruption and cost.
Crucially, the council is now asking residents to suggest suitable locations. Ganesh Gudka added: “We have many streets in our towns where residents do not have off‑street parking to connect to a charger on their property. This is a real chance for people living in such homes to ask for a reasonably priced chargepoint to be placed near their homes.”
Residents can submit suggestions via Somerset Council’s online form. Each proposed location receives a unique reference number and is added to an interactive map.
All suggestions will be assessed against criteria such as pavement width, nearby housing, fire safety rules, flood zones, conservation areas and tree roots. Those that pass the initial checks will then be reviewed on site by the council’s contractor. More information can be found here on the strategy.
