Salem To Charge For Electric Vehicle Charging At City Stations

SALEM, MA — Salem will begin charging fees at all publicly accessible charging stations later this month in a move officials said will offset some of the costs of operating the stations while making the fees uniform at municipal charging stations across the city.

Those powering up their vehicles will pay 35 cents per kilowatt fee at all the stations. The Museum Place Garage, South Harbor Garage and the Sewall Street Lot currently offer free charging for those who pay to park in the lots, while the Bertram Field, Bentley Academy, Salerno Auto School, and Forest River Park had charged a $2 per hour fee.

Officials said that while the rates will not cover the full cost of the city ownership and maintenance of the stations, they will help offset some costs and ensure that Salem can continue to provide and expand municipal charging services.

The city said the fee will go toward both the wholesale cost of electricity as well as the maintenance and network plans of the stations.

Arlington, Beverly, Boston, Cambridge, Medford, Melrose, and Swampscott all currently implement a price-per-energy charge for public EV charging.

Those powering up will need to create a Chargepoint account and download an app for their phones.

The charging fee will be separate from any municipal parking fee charged in a garage or lot.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)