Vandalism puts EV chargers out of action at city hub

'WASTE OF MONEY' FACILITY IN WRONG PLACE - COUNCILLOR

- By OSCAR FISHER

A CLUSTER of electric vehicle chargers have been vandalised and stripped bare by thieves, just months after they were installed at a Derby shopping precinct.

Copper cables have been snipped and stolen from the EV chargers in Prince Charles Avenue, Mackworth, which were installed at the end of July.

The theft has rendered the chargers “useless” according to a councillor - but he thinks they were a “waste of money” in the first place.

Conservative councillor Gaurav Pandey, who represents the Mackworth and New Zealand ward, is now asking what will be done to protect EV chargers in future - and who will pay for the recent damage.

Cllr Pandey said: “They put four EV chargers in Mackworth earlier this year using £186,000 from the government.

“That's a huge amount of money in my opinion, so when the idea was put forward, I was always against it; I always thought it was the wrong location.