To ask the Minister for Regional Development, pursuant to AQW 14112/11-15 and given the low number of applications for the Ecar Home and Workplace Charge Point Grant, what further actions his Department will take to make the transition to an electric vehicle a more attractive option.

Studies have shown that electric vehicles become more prevalent as charge point infrastructure is developed. My Department has to date overseen the installation of 40 charge points and 4 rapid charge points for electric vehicles. By the end of March 2013 it is anticipated that a further 120 charge points and 10 rapid charge points will have been installed with the result that nobody in Northern Ireland will be more than 30 miles from a charge point. I also recently introduced legislation to ensure that the parking spaces at charge points in DRD managed sites are restricted to electric vehicles which are using the charge point.

Over the past year, there have been launch events held in six council areas, in addition to overall project and website launch events in Stormont during 2011. A formal charge point launch event took place in March 2011 at Belfast City Hall, to which approx. 200 people attended.

However, to further encourage the uptake of Electric Vehicles my Department is currently planning a number of marketing activities, culminating in a three day conference during ‘Climate Week’ in March 2013, which will target schools, businesses and motorists in general. I anticipate that around 700 people will have a direct opportunity to hear about, and drive in, an electric vehicle during the conference. My Department is also engaging in speaking events, magazine and newspaper articles and local electric vehicle launches, all of which assist in raising the profile of the ecar Project. Other marketing activities planned for include further website development, the launch of a smart phone app and advertisement.

My Department is also in regular contact with car dealers and distributors to keep them informed of our growing infrastructure and also with local councils who are members of our ecar Consortium to encourage local promotional events. Local dealerships are also engaging with manufacturers on reducing the purchase price of the electric vehicles, and offering deals and incentives for electric vehicle drivers. We are aware that purchase price is currently a barrier to uptake, and manufacturers have assured us that less expensive electric vehicle options will be appearing on the market in early 2013.

Finally, my Department is running a series of ‘fleet trials’, where businesses across Northern Ireland have been offered the opportunity to trial electric vehicles for a 1-week period. There has been considerable interest in this, with up to 15 businesses taking part to date.