Loney Unveils Bold Electric Vehicle Strategy
Includes Commitment to Install at Least 500 EV Chargers
Released July 5, 2022
WINNIPEG, Manitoba – Mayoral candidate Shaun Loney announced his 9-point vehicle electrification plan for Winnipeg from the front seat of his 2019 electric vehicle (EV) as he toured reporters around Downtown Winnipeg in a “Reporters in Cars” event.
He told reporters that as Winnipeg’s next Mayor he will accelerate Winnipeg’s transition to electric transportation making it more convenient and practical for more Winnipeggers to embrace EVs.
“We have an abundant supply of low-cost, renewable electricity,” said Loney. “We just need leadership and vision,” noting Winnipeggers are being hard hit by record-high gasoline prices.
Loney’s plan includes installing at least 500 Level 2 chargers strategically at City-owned sites by the end of his mandate.
“The City will recover the capital needed by charging for services on a cost-recovery basis and leveraging federal government funding,” said Loney.
Loney pointed to the City of Winnipeg Community Energy Investment Roadmap (CEIR) made public last week which says the City has an opportunity to create over 100,000 person years of employment if we embrace the green energy transition but political leadership is needed to make it happen.
Loney revealed that over the next several weeks of the campaign, he will release a series of detailed plans to jumpstart Winnipeg on the path to meet that target.
Gavin Pitchford, Executive Director of the Canada’s Clean50 Award program said, “Shaun Loney is uniquely qualified to quarterback the transition in Winnipeg.” Canada Clean50 recently recognized Loney’s green economy track record as having national importance. Loney was honoured for co-founding and growing Aki Energy which has installed $15 million worth of heat pumps on Manitoba First Nations.
ScotiaBank also acknowledged Loney as being a leader in Canada by awarding BUILD - which Loney also co-founded - its inaugural green Business Leadership Award. BUILD has lowered utility bills for 15,000 low income households in Winnipeg by installing insulation and high-efficiency furnaces, along with water-saving toilets and showerheads.
Ken Klassen, a Winnipeg-based international expert on energy efficiency and sustainable communities said, “When Loney was Director of Energy Policy for the Government of Manitoba, he led a team that took Manitoba from a laggard to leader in energy efficiency, renewable
energy and green buildings. I can’t wait to see how his experience and vision will benefit the City.”
“The new CEIR report underscores enormous economic opportunities and important social benefits that the climate crisis presents for Winnipeg,” noted Loney. “We need a new vision, bold leadership and swift action that I am ready to provide.”
Loney noted that EVs are only a part of the answer to shifting Winnipeg’s reliance away from fossil fuels for transportation, referencing an upcoming announcement to create MetroMobility - a big city transit system for Winnipeg.
The Loney EV Action Plan
1. Establishing a Civic Zero Emission Vehicle Advisory Committee.
2. Modernizing the mandate of the Winnipeg Parking Authority and engage it to strategically install at least 500 public EV Level 2 charging stations throughout the City within four years including on City properties and curbside.
3. Leading-by-example by vastly expanding the proportion of the City of Winnipeg’s vehicle fleet that are EVs.
4. Designating preferential parking for EVs at civic facilities for the general public, carshare co-ops and delivery vehicles.
5. Streamlining the approval and permitting process for the installation of EV chargers for parking areas intended for public use that are privately owned and operated.
6. Supporting on-street charging options for Winnipeggers without access to off-street parking or the ability to install a charger.
7. Introducing a ‘EV-ready’ by-law for new developments and major renovation projects to make the future installation of EV charging easier and less expensive.
8. Conveniently offering homeowners, landlords and fleet operators installed EV chargers. Upfront costs will be paid back in low monthly installments on property tax bills (‘Property Assessed Clean Energy’ or PACE). The service will be affordable due to bulk buying strategies and low financing costs.
9. Making Winnipeg, along with the City of Thompson, Centers of Excellence in Cold Weather EV Testing in cooperation with the Red River College Polytechnic MotiveLab™ Vehicle Technology & Energy Centre, Government of Manitoba and Manitoba Hydro.
Backgrounder
1. A large number of Canadians (including Winnipeggers) are looking to buy an EV. ● According to a May 2022 poll by the professional service firm Ernst & Young, the number of Canadians planning to buy a car and looking to buy an EV has climbed to 46 percent, up 11 percent from 2021.
● The availability of charging stations, however, still remained a barrier for 36 per cent of those polled.
2. A massive increase in EV charging infrastructure will be required to meet an anticipated surge in sales of EVs as automakers ramp-up deliveries of new electrified vehicles.
● A key finding from an April 2022 national survey by Pollution Probe is that “The majority of Canadian electric vehicle owners feel the public charging network is inadequate, meaning EV usage is not as convenient as it should be.”
3. The City of Winnipeg has been slow to take advantage of federal funding for purchasing EVs and to install EV charging infrastructure.
● Since 2019, the federal government has funded the installation of 35,000 charging stations across Canada.
● In its 2022 budget, the federal government announced an additional $1.7-billion to extend the government’s EV purchase incentive program until March 2025. ● The budget also included $500 million in investments for the Canada Infrastructure Bank and $400 million in additional funding for the Zero-Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Program to support the installation of 50,000 more EV chargers by 2025.
4. The City of Winnipeg is lagging behind other leading jurisdictions in facilitating at-home EV charging.
● When it comes to reducing barriers to EV adoption in Canada, one of the most critical steps governments can do is to help provide access to at-home EV charging. ● B.C. is Canada’s most advanced province in terms of having mandates for EV charging access in condos, apartment buildings, strata or townhomes. The City of Vancouver, and the City of Victoria, plus 18 other cities in B.C. have EV-readiness requirements. ● In Toronto, beginning May 2022, all residential parking spaces provided for new dwelling units located in an apartment building, mixed-use building, and multiple dwelling unit building, but excluding visitor parking, must include an electrical outlet capable of providing Level 2 EV charging or higher to the parking space.
● Since October 2018, it has been mandatory in Montreal and other cities throughout Quebec for every new single dwelling to be equipped with a garage, a carport or a parking area that can support a Level 2 EV charging station.
● Over 80 percent of EV charging is done at Level 2 chargers either at home or nearby where an EV can sit for a few hours.
5. Experience elsewhere in Canada demonstrates that strong leadership and progressive public policy results in much higher take-up rates for EVs. ● New car registration totals for the first quarter of 2022 show EV uptake in Canada is gathering speed.
● In Canada’s three biggest cities, Vancouver led the charge with a 21.6 percent EV registration rate. Montreal (17.1 per cent) and Toronto (7.6 per cent) came in second and third place respectively.
● In Manitoba, growth in market share was modest year-over-year (up 1.5 to 2.4 per cent).
References
1. City of Winnipeg Community Energy Investment Roadmap (CEIR).
Sustainability Solutions Group (SSG), June 2022.
2. May 2022 Mobility Consumer Index.
Ernst & Young Global Limited, May 23, 2022.
3. Assessment of the Consumer Electric Vehicle Charging Experience in Canada. Pollution Probe, June 2022.
4. Zero Emissions Infrastructure Program.
Natural Resources Canada, Accessed July 4, 2022