The Municipality of Lakeshore has unveiled two new electric vehicle charging stations.
A "plugging-in" ceremony was held on Tuesday - on Earth Day - marking the official launch of the stations which are located at the Atlas Tube Recreation Centre and Lakeview Park in Belle River.
This project was funded through Aviva Canada's Charged for Change program.
The total cost of the two charging stations was approximately $130,000, with the grant covering $125,000.
Lakeshore is one of seven Ontario municipalities to receive Level 2 EV chargers in the inaugural year of the program and each station can charge two vehicles at a time.
Lakeshore mayor, Tracey Bailey, says these charges were actually installed earlier this month.
"We're seeing significant usage, so both sites, both here at the park here [Lakeview Park], and at the Atlas Tube Recreation Centre, we see people plugging in more, and more often. So, we'll continue to evaluate the usage, and really look at our community of communities for where we might want to install more."
Marco Villella, Division Leader of Energy Management and Utilities with the Municipality of Lakeshore, says this will offer residents and visitors a place to charge.
"It's an opportunity for the community when they're stopping by the Atlas Tube, or coming to the park, and they have their EV with them, they can now charge while they're at their stay here. So, it's just giving an opportunity to EV owners in the community."
Villella says in the past few years they've seen the rise in EV ownership.
"We know other municipalities in communication with them have seen a rise. The City of Windsor and the Town of Tecumseh have installed these as well, so we're just tagging along within the region to support this EV infrastructure."
The charging stations can be accessed using the ChargePoint application.
EV drivers can use the platform via website or smartphone application. The cost to charge a vehicle is $2 per hour.
-with files from CTV Windsor's Chris Campbell