RMLD Plans 3 Electric Vehicle Charging Stations In Reading

READING, MA — The Reading Municipal Light Department wants to install three electric vehicle charging stations in Reading, but town officials first have to hash out the terms of their land-use agreement with the department.

At Tuesday's select board meeting, RMLD General Manager Colleen O'Brien presented plans for the stations, which would be located at the library, the depot parking lot on Lincoln Street and the parking area at Haven and Main Streets.

The department received a grant for the stations in August and has to complete construction within six months of its acceptance. Anticipating asking the state for an extension, O'Brien estimated the stations would be completed by May 2022.

The stations would use about 25 kilowatt-hours of energy a day, O'Brien said. They would fall under the direction of RMLD, which plans to cover the additional cost of construction after the grant funding has been depleted.

There was some discussion over the terms of RMLD's licensing agreement with the town, particularly the 30-year time frame for which Reading would be locked in. O'Brien said she is seeking a standardized agreement with the towns the department serves and explained 30 years is the estimated time period during which RMLD's assets would depreciate.

Both O'Brien and members of the select board pointed out that this is something they would like to do, as it is expected the demand for such stations will only increase in the coming decades. O'Brien said she will request another four sites in each of the RMLD's towns for next year.

"[It's] more of a 'build and they will come,'" she said. "I want to see how the electric vehicles start to come in town."

Select board member Karen Herrick will work with the RMLD on the terms of the land-use license, to be presented at the next meeting.