Electric Vehicle Charging Stations Coming Down The Road In Horsham

HORSHAM TOWNSHIP, PA —Motorists who drive electric vehicles may have a new pit stop to "fuel" up down the road.

The Horsham Township Council is moving ahead with plans to add two charging stations for electric vehicles, one at the municipal complex on Horsham Road and the other at the Horsham Township Library on Babylon Road.

Dennis Haggerty, the township's director of administration, provided council members with a presentation at Wednesday night's meeting to go with Chargepoint, a company that has numerous charging stations placed in Horsham —including seven throughout the township —and surrounding communities.

Haggerty said the company is the top provider of charging stations in the country, with more than 20,000 locations. He said Chargepoint offers 24/7 support and is "reliable and innovative."

"Over 200 people in their company have electric cars," he said.

Each station has two ports for two vehicles to use at the same time. The stations would be set up in the parking lots at the municipal complex and library with two spots designated in green for electric vehicles.

Haggerty said the stations are outlined in orange but that the township could put its own logo on them for branding purposes.

The contract would be for five years and include a maintenance agreement.

Haggerty said there are some funding incentives available, including a $4,000 grant from the Department of Environmental Protection and a possible PECO grant.

One issue that concerned township officials were how long it would take to charge a vehicle and whether people would leave their cars overnight at the municipal complex and library.

Haggerty said to fully-charge a vehicle could take six-to-eight hours, but that most are usually "topped off" after three or four hours. He told Council President Mark McCouch that he anticipated people would maybe use the township's stations for a few hours at the most and that the township could set time limits.

Township Manager Bill Walker said that several municipalities offer the stations and place them at their libraries or parks.

"Everyone hasn't had a problem with them," he said. "No one is parking their cars overnight and getting a ride home."

The cost for each charging station is between $30,000 and $40,000, Haggerty said.

Walker said officials had asked him to do research on the charging stations last year and he "built" funds into the 2023 municipal budget to cover costs.

Walker said the township could use the stations as a "pilot program" and then decide whether it wanted to add more stations at other township locations.

McCouch asked Police Chief Scott Fida if he was getting any electric vehicles for the police department.

"We're working on it," the chief replied.

Walker said the order time for the charging stations is 12-14 weeks.

The council asked Walker and Haggerty to move forward with the plan for the charging stations.