Electric vehicle owners in the North East have a fantastic new location for rapid charging – right next to the Angel of the North on the A167 Durham Road in Gateshead.

There are four outlets from the two 50 kilowatt rapid chargers on site which can charge most electric vehicles to 80% capacity in just 30 minutes.

Plans have also been made to expand the station in the future as electric vehicles grow in popularity. Transport North East and Gateshead Council have worked with EV charging infrastructure specialist Fastned to bring the new site forward.

The artist who created the Angel of the North, Sir Antony Gormley, has been consulted during this process.

The new chargers have been delivered through Go Ultra Low North East a £3m  project funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the UK Government’s Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV).

The project has funded the building of 11 charging hubs in the North East as well as an EV ‘filling station’ in Sunderland and work on engaging SMEs and a Business Innovator.

The charging station will be operated and maintained through a contract with FastNed.

Councillor Martin Gannon, leader of Gateshead Council and the chair of the North East Joint Transport Committee, said: “This latest investment in our regional electric vehicle infrastructure demonstrates that zero emission vehicles are high on the North East’s agenda as outlined in the North East Transport Plan.

“Electric Vehicles provide a cleaner, more sustainable option for motorists and on behalf of the Joint Transport Committee I am pleased that this new site will encourage even more people to make the switch to an EV.

“This is a great strategic site, close to the A1 and convenient for residential areas nearby. People can stop to charge their car and enjoy the Angel while they wait.”

Costs for charging are 39p per kilowatt hour, or 29p for ‘gold’ members of the Fastned membership scheme.

The new chargers at the Angel are part of a growing network of EV chargers across the North East, helping to make EV ownership a practical proposition for everybody.

Fast chargers in Gateshead can also now be found at the Heworth Metro interchange long stay car park which allows people to charge their cars while they use the bus or Metro to travel.

For a list of all charging stations on council-owned sites, go to Electric vehicle (EV) charge points in Gateshead – Gateshead Council.

Councillor Gannon added: “We’re delighted to see this new charging station opened up in such an iconic location.

“Our whole region needs to move faster to reduce our carbon emissions, and chargers like these are a key part of that picture.

“We want to see more and more people switching from petrol and diesel vehicles, over to EVs – but also to see people recognise when they should leave their car at home and walk, cycle or take public transport instead.”

Michiel Langezaal, CEO of Fastned, said: “Our mission is to accelerate the transition to electric mobility by giving electric drivers freedom. We were therefore delighted to work with Gateshead Council and the North East Joint Transport Committee to bring fast and easy charging to such an iconic landmark in the North East. This brings the number of active Fastned stations in the North East to six and further increases our contribution to the Government’s goal of creating a world-class charging infrastructure network. We look forward to forming many more productive partnerships with local leaders to create the infrastructure their communities need to switch to electric.”