SOUTHAMPTON City Council is set to introduce fees for electric vehicle charging next month.
It comes as the council is facing rising energy costs and commercial companies were using the free charging points.
Currently, motorists can use any of the council's 47 charge points across the city at no cost other than the normal parking fee.
The registration of new electric vehicles in the city increased by nearly 80 per cent last year and that trend is expected to continue.
As reported, a council report said that providing electricity for the charging points currently costs £7,500 a month.
The tariffs will begin on December 12. There will not be any connection or subscription costs.
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Costs are set to rise to £22,500 a month by 2023/24.
Councillor Eammon Keogh, cabinet member for transport and district regeneration, hopes to "keep up with demand."
He said: “Electric vehicle users in our city have increased so much since we first introduced the trial of free charging, showing their support for our green city plan.
"The time has come to take a step forward and keep up with demand by introducing competitive tariffs on our chargers.
"The tariffs introduced will be competitive and will support our plans for more charging facilities in the future.”
The scheme was introduced originally in 2018. The plan was to encourage the early take-up of electric vehicles in the city when this type of vehicle was still new.
The new tariffs will make £9,600 a year for the council after covering the cost of electricity, the report said. The fee has not yet been set.
Future fees and the pricing policy will be subject to regular review by the council.
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