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Update following Council approval

A trial of on-street, pole-mounted electric vehicle (EV) chargers has been approved by Council at the Council meeting on 13 May 2026. Based on officer review and community consultation, eight chargers have been approved. See the map below for these locations. Residents of these areas will be informed and installations will take place after this. Notices will be attached to the chargers allowing residents to provide feedback during the course of the trial.

In the move to a more sustainable transport system, active and public transport are key, but electric vehicles (also known as EVs) are also important. EVs are becoming more popular in Merri-bek, they are getting cheaper and batteries are getting better.

People can charge their EVs at home or out and about. Council owns and operates 26 public EV chargers that the community can use around Merri-bek. These chargers are mostly in car parks.

We have received feedback from residents who cannot charge their EVs at home because they do not have off-street parking like a driveway. We hear that our public chargers are often very busy or too far from people's homes.

To help address this issue, we are trialling on-street EV chargers that are mounted on electricity poles.

About pole-mounted EV chargers

The on-street EV chargers are small boxes attached to power poles. A charging cable runs from the box to the car. Each charger is able to charge 2 vehicles at a time. There are dedicated street parking spaces beside the pole that act as the charging bays.

The chargers are operated by private companies and, like other public chargers, will require you to pay a fee to use them.

Pole-mounted EV chargers are much cheaper and faster to install than other kinds of public chargers, like the ones you see in shopping centre car parks. Over a hundred pole-mounted chargers have already been installed in NSW and are operating successfully.

Public pole-mounted charger in Glebe, NSW
A close up of a pole-mounted EV charger. It is a slim grey box attached to a wooden power pole. In the background there is a car parked on the street, near the pole with a spiral cord running from the charger to the car.
Pole-mounted charger in the city of Boroondara, Vic
A car parked in a car park space with a charging cable running from the car to a small grey box mounted on a wooden pole.

About the trial

The trial will involve at least 2 private operators, managing the chargers at different sites.

  • Private operators will own and operate the chargers and will be responsible for setting the price of the electricity they supply.
  • Council is responsible for community engagement and for managing the parking bays. Other than this, there will be no cost to Council.

Each charger can supply power to two vehicles, at a speed of up to 22kW.

Extra proposed locations may be added, make sure you follow this page to receive updates to your inbox.