- The government’s subsidy plan will cover 60,000 parking spaces in 4,000 car parks
- The city now has more than 12,000 electric vehicles approved for road use
Hong Kong's old private estates will obtain a total of HK$2 billion (US$254.9 million) subsidy to upgrade their parking facilities to enable the charging of electric vehicles, Hong Kong's environment minister announced on Tuesday, a day ahead of the chief executive's policy address.
"One obstacle faced by private residences when considering the upgrade is who should bear the costs, as not all residents own electric vehicles," said Secretary for the Environment Wong Kam-sing. "This measure should be able to help with this problem."
The government expects the plan to cover 60,000 parking spaces in 4,000 car parks over the next three years.
Combined with the 100 per cent gross floor area concessions for electric vehicle chargers granted by the Building Authority since 2011 to private developers, a quarter of all parking spaces in Hong Kong should be compatible with electric vehicle charging in three years, Wong said.
Property management companies would need to engage residents and agree on the installation before applying for the subsidy, he said.
However, he did not provide details on the application process or the amount which would be granted to individual estates, only saying the subsidy would cover a high proportion of the costs.
As of August, there were 12,195 electric vehicles approved for road use in Hong Kong, up from fewer than 100 at the end of 2010.
"This measure will certainly benefit a lot of people. A lot of car buyers used to complain they could not buy electric vehicles as they were not able to charge their cars at home," said Wesley Wan Wai-hei, president of the Hong Kong Automobile Association and a member of the steering committee on the promotion of electronic vehicles under the Environmental Protection Department.
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Meanwhile, private residence management companies would bear less cost to install the infrastructure required to charge smart cars and electric vehicles, he said.
"It should be a requirement for private car parks to enable electric vehicle charging, there's no reason for owners to have to rely on charging points elsewhere," Wan said.
Green group Friends of the Earth (HK) welcomed the measure, saying it encouraged private residence management companies to apply for the subsidy.
"Electric vehicles aid in fighting climate change. The transport sector is the second largest contributor to climate change and accounts for 18 per cent of local greenhouse gas emissions. EVs are more energy efficient, being as much as three times more efficient and producing 40 per cent greenhouse gas than conventional vehicles," the group said in a statement.
However, it noted: "(Electric vehicles) should not be considered the optimal solution as private EVs still contribute to traffic congestion. The Government must curtail Hong Kong's dependence on private cars in the long term. They should consider taking reference from Singapore's Vehicle Quota System in capping car ownership."
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