The lack of electrical charging points in Cahir has been slammed by a local councillor.
At this month’s meeting of the Tipp-Cahir-Cashel MD, councillor Andy Moloney said the town was at an economic disadvantage on the tourism front due to not having a single EV charging point.
He says this could result in people avoiding coming or returning to Cahir.
Cllr. Moloney says promoting EV cars to reduce carbon footprints is difficult when they have nowhere to park.
“We’re on a big promotional thing as regards to EV charging and cutting down on carbon footprint, and while we’re doing this, all the hired cars are coming into town, and the hired cars are all EV, and they have nowhere to charge up. Cahir is at an economic disadvantage, as are the surrounding villages, like Mitchelstown Caves, the Vee, Ardfinnan, and so forth. We’re all at a disadvantage by not having these points, and they need to be put in sooner rather than later. People are planning their journeys now; they’re planning where they can charge, where they can eat, and where they can get services. There are no services in Cahir for EV charging in Cahir, so people are planning accordingly, and they’re going to give the amount that they could or should give in the area.”
It was heard at the meeting that the council has signed a deal with the ESB for EV points at the Cahir carpark.
However, Cllr. Moloney says the ESB is dragging its heels.
“At this present moment in time, you couldn’t charge as much as a razor because we don’t have the points in place. When people are coming to Cahir, they like to charge when they’re visiting the town, and then when they are charged, they don’t have to go back to the bigger district centres. So, I’ve been calling for a long time to have EV charging points based in the carpark in Cahir so that people can visit the Castle or Swiss Cottage and charge as they go. That way, they’ll be able to take a journey around the local villages and things. So, I’m calling on the council, who has signed a deal with the ESB, but the ESB seems to be dragging. It’s not the council’s fault; it’s the ESB who needs to put the points in place.”
