Cambrian College officially opens 20 electric vehicle chargers

Cambrian College in Sudbury, Ont. held a grand opening for its 20 electric vehicle (EV) charging stations Wednesday.

The college has installed the level-two ChargePoint stations over the past months in three of its parking lots. It costs $2.50 per hour to use them for up to four hours, though drivers don't have to pay hourly parking rates if they're at a charging spot.

The charging stations cost $354,000 to buy and install, according to the college, with $100,000 of that money coming from Natural Resources Canada. Cambrian College said the chargers represent the school's "great headway" toward reducing carbon emissions.

"We are looking at ordering two EV vehicles in the coming year. So we will be continuing to build our own fleet out to be able to use the EV chargers as well," said Kristine Morrissey, Cambrian's vice-president of finance, international and administration. The school currently has one hybrid vehicle in its fleet.

Guests at the announcement included federal Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson, Sudbury MP Viviane Lapointe, Nickel Belt MP Marc Serré, Mayor Paul Lefebvre and many college officials.

The school said it's tracking the usage numbers of its chargers, though Morrissey said she was waiting until the fall to share those figures after the service becomes more widely known.

She said Cambrian would assess its user base and adjust its services as needed.

"The more students, staff and faculty really embrace EV vehicles, we'll see that trend continue to grow and we'll scale with it accordingly."

Morrissey said Cambrian has been thinking about adding charging stations during its strategic planning process two years ago. It saw the funding proposal from Natural Resources Canada and applied, ultimately receiving nearly one-third of the project cost.

But EVs remain expensive to purchase compared to conventional vehicles, especially for students—many of whom don't own a car. Morrissey said the school is encouraging sustainable transportation for non-drivers by incentivizing carpooling and working with the city to optimize transit services.

She said the school hadn't received any specific requests to install the charging stations but said she hoped it would appeal to the many students who are passionate about the environment and sustainability.

"I think even if they can't afford [electric vehicles], they will take note of the great work that Cambrian is doing to support those that can," she said.

CBC News asked some students around campus what they thought about the new chargers. Some said having chargers might make people think about buying an EV, while others said they simply couldn't afford to get away from their fossil fuel engines.