Adopted by Council

24 August 2021

Supporting electric vehicle technology

The Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Plan will guide the future management of publicly operated electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in the Northern Beaches.

The plan identifies the framework for establishing a future network of EV charging stations and outlines conditions for the installation, management, maintenance and removal of EV charging infrastructure on identified Council sites.

The plan was publicly exhibited between 8 April to 9 May 2021. Thank you to everyone who provided feedback.

A report was presented at the Council meeting on Tuesday 24 August 2021 to seek adoption of the Northern Beaches Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Plan noting the community engagement outcomes.

The report recommendations were adopted as amended. Read the Council Minutes for more information.

Engagement outcomes

The community engagement conducted from 8 April to 9 May 2021 revealed a high level of support for the draft Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Infrastructure Plan with comments citing the anticipated environmental benefits of encouraging electric vehicle uptake on the Northern Beaches.

Feedback also suggested Council should consider more locations for EV charging infrastructure, including at shopping centres, beach car parks and near public transport hubs.

Respondents who were not supportive of the proposal felt that the cost of infrastructure and electricity should lie with the user and not the taxpayers. Some felt the draft plan unfairly supported a minority of people who had EVs and not the general public.

Learn more

Our MOVE Transport Strategy sets a target of a 30 percent reduction in vehicle emissions by 2038, and our Climate Change Action Plan has a range of actions for delivering this outcome including facilitating and providing public EV charging infrastructure at key locations.

The draft plan supports the uptake of electric vehicles and will help reduce 'range anxiety' for EV drivers with more convenient charging stations across the area.

Click here to view an interactive map of all the current EV chargers across Australia.

The draft plan proposes future charging locations across the Northern Beaches including:

  • strategic centres
  • tourist destinations
  • beach carparks
  • commuter hubs
  • near community centres and regional playgrounds.

We are investigating the following locations as possible sites for EV charging stations when funding becomes available.

  • Pittwater Park carpark, Palm Beach
  • Palm Beach Road, Palm Beach
  • Dee Why Beach carpark
  • Dee Why Library carpark
  • Whistler Street carpark, Manly
  • Bungan Street, Mona Vale (Ausgrid proposal)
  • Park Street, Mona Vale (Ausgrid proposal)
  • Forestville (Ausgrid proposal)
  • Oaks Avenue, Dee Why (Ausgrid proposal)
  • Lawrence Street, Freshwater (Ausgrid proposal)


Council will consider the suitability of a potential site for a charging station based on the following factors:

  • Existing and/or potential future demand for EV charging.
  • Location - for the user to stop, spend time in the area or use local amenities.
  • Safe access to the proposed charging infrastructure.
  • Proximity to a suitable power supply.

Council will also consider sites that are located at key entry points to the Northern Beaches or near main road corridors.

There are three types of electric vehicles:

  • Hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) are combination of a conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) with a small battery and electric motor. All energy comes from the fuel and the recovered braking energy. This means there is no plug required to charge the battery and therefore no need for these types of cars to use the charging station e.g. Toyota Prius, Subaru Forester, Toyota Camry.
  • Plug in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) have two powertrains; an electric motor and an internal combustion engine. PHEVs can be driven in different modes using their different drivetrains. These types of vehicles will be able to use charging stations e.g. Mitsubishi Outlander, and BMW.
  • Pure Battery-electric vehicles (BEV) only source of power is electricity from an external source with energy stored in on-board batteries, e.g. Tesla, Hyundai, or Nissan Leaf. These vehicles will be able to use the proposed charging stati

Our aim is to provide universal charging systems that are not assigned to any particular vehicle manufacturer.

There are six different levels of EV charging infrastructure available. See the table below.

We propose to supply a variety of charging stations across the area:

• Level 2 charging infrastructure (7kw AC) will be installed in several long-term carpark locations to provide charging options for those owners with limited parking availability and/or commuters. Time limit between 2 and 6 hours.

• Level 2 charging infrastructure (11- 22kw AC) will be installed in short term carpark locations and suitable destination locations (some models are currently not able to utilise these chargers to their full capacity). Time limit between 30 minutes and 2 hours.

• Level 3 charging infrastructure (25kw DC) will be installed at high demand destinations and close to regional transport corridors to allow for short duration rapid top-up charge (PHEV and some older models cannot use DC Charging). May be limited to less than 30 minutes.


The Electric Vehicle Council is the national body representing the electric vehicle industry in Australia. They have a range of information available relating to EV's and a handy resource pack.

For further information

Please contact:

Name Michelle Carter, Strategic Transport Coordinator
Phone 1300 434 434 (during business hours)
Email council@northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au
In writing

'EV charging infrastructure plan', Northern Beaches Council, PO Box 82, Manly NSW 1655.