Sustainable transport

Transport is the single biggest contributor of carbon emissions in Northumberland. We need to change the way we travel by taking shorter journeys, walking more, cycling, taking public transport and investing in electric vehicles.

Slow down, take stock and adopt more sustainable ways of travel by walking, cycling and using public transport more often.

The Big Northumberland Gear Change is a local campaign to encourage us all to slow down, take stock and adopt more sustainable ways of moving around the county by walking, cycling and using public transport more often. 

Reducing our reliance on cars is crucial to achieving Northumberland's target of becoming carbon neutral by 2030. With only 13% of all journeys in Northumberland made on foot or by bike and with a third of all trips made in the county less than 5km, there is plenty of potential for us all to ditch our cars some or all of the time in favour of healthier, greener and happier ways of getting around.

Find out more at northumberlandgearchange.co.uk

Here you can find out everything you need to know about electric vehicle charging points in Northumberland.

Find your nearest EV charging point

Northumberland County Council chargers have a tariff of 57p per kwh for the 11 kW and 22 kW chargers and 65 p per kwh for the 50 kW chargers. Find your nearest EV charging point here.

How to use council charging points

Northumberland County Council has scores of EV charging points dotted around the county and they're pretty simple to use. Here's a quick reminder of what you need to do to keep your EV on the move.

If you have access to off-street parking, you may be eligible for a government grant for a home EV charger.

The EV chargepoint grant provides a 75% contribution to the cost of one chargepoint including installation. Depending on whether you are a landlord or rent a property, different applying conditions need to be meet.

Find out more on electric vehicle Homecharge here.

We want to hear from residents who don’t have off-street parking to help select areas that would benefit from on-street EV charge points. Suggest a location near your home and we will collate responses which will be reviewed collectively to help inform potential future delivery in areas where demand is greatest.

Complete the form here.

Requests cannot be responded to individually and there is no guarantee that an on-street EV charger will be installed as a result of completing this form. It will, however, help Northumberland County Council to better understand where EV chargers may be needed.

If you are a business, you may be eligible for a government grant for workplace EV chargers. The Workplace Charging Scheme is a voucher-based scheme designed to provide eligible applicants with support towards the upfront costs of the purchase and installation of EV charge points. The contribution is limited to the 75% of purchase and installation costs, up to a maximum of £350 for each socket, up to a maximum of 40 across all sites for each applicant.

Find out more here.

Northumberland County Council promotes sustainable transport under the Go Smarter banner.

Go Smarter encourages people across Northumberland to explore and use sustainable modes of transport - walking, cycling, public transport and car sharing - when travelling to work and school; making journeys greener, cheaper and healthier.  

Find out more about Go Smarter Northumberland here.

Local cycling and walking infrastructure plans (LCWIPs) encompass priority infrastructure projects to improve cycling and walking within Northumberland.

The main purpose of the LCWIPs is to make cycling and walking an accessible first alternative for people who want to reduce their carbon footprint and improve their health.

There are currently 11 LCWIP projects active in Northumberland, including Blyth, Ponteland, Ashington, Hexham, Bedlington, Haltwhistle. Some projects will start their construction phase during 2023 while some others are still under early preliminary design stages.