CAMBRIDGE, MASS. (WHDH) - A pilot program in Cambridge is allowing some residents to run power cables across their sidewalks so that they can charge their electric vehicles on the road.
Russell Keziere is one of many Cambridge residents without a garage or driveway. So, when he and his wife bought a new electric vehicle last year, they were presented with a problem.
“The choice was to either move to a new home with a driveway in the suburbs, but then we give up Cambridge, which is full of great neighbors, density, places to go,” said Keziere. But now thanks to the program, he doesn’t have that problem because he can run a cable through an ADA compliant ramp.
“They’re lightweight, even I can carry them out, put the cable in, charge them, and there’s no problem for people in wheelchairs, shopping carts, baby buggies and that kind of thing,” he said.
Cambridge City Councilor Patty Nolan spearheaded the program. Similar initiatives are already underway in other cities, including Seattle.
“Most people in Cambridge that I know who consider buying an EV say range anxiety or charging anxiety,” are issues, Nolan said.
“This is something, we want people to get EVs, the car manufacturers want people to get EVs, our climate goals are assuming people will get EVs … and people didn’t have a way to charge.”
A permit for the program costs $200 annually and residents have to live at least an eighth of a mile from a city charging station, have a Cambridge parking permit, a ground-level outdoor outlet, proof of insurance, and provide the ADA accessible ramp.
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