Charging stations open in Trepassey, Fermeuse and St. Mary’s
By Mark Squibb/July 29, 2022
Folks taking their electric vehicles for a spin around the Irish Loop will now be able to charge up along the way.
TakeCharge NL, a joint initiative of Newfoundland Power and Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro, has installed three charging stations along the Loop — one at In Da Loop Restaurant & Pub in Fermeuse, one at Trepassey Variety, and the third at Ryan’s Value Foods in St. Mary’s.
“Newfoundland Power reached out to me and asked if I was interested, and I said, ‘B’y I’m interested in anything that’s new,’” said Wayne Hanlon of Trepassey Variety.
And so, he leased a small sliver of land to NL Power, who installed the charger, which they also pay to maintain and keep running.
“The very first day it was hooked up and running, we had a guy haul in from BC,” said Hanlon. “But the sad part about it is, it wouldn’t work with his car. According to NL Power, buddy had an issue with his plug on his car, because they (NL Power) brought up their car from St. John’s and plugged into it best kind.”
Hanlon said that others have experienced problems with the charger too, including one man who couldn’t get it to work on the Friday of the Bell Aliant outage, but by-and-large, people have been able to charge-and-go.
He said one customer was absolutely delighted when he heard he had a charging station at the store.
“He was just after buying an electric vehicle and didn’t know that we were having a charging station put in,” said Hanlon. “He was tickled pink when he found out we were going to have one here in Trepassey.”
Visitors are also likely to take advantage of the charging station.
“Last summer, before the charging station was here, we had three electric cars on our parking lot at the one time,” said Hanlon. “They must have been traveling together. But they had to turn around and go back, because of the charge on one of the cars. But now, the guys who’ve got these cars, they can keep on going. They can hang around the community longer and go see some of the sights that they couldn’t see before.”
Hanlon doesn’t receive a direct financial benefit from the charging station, but he does receive new customers because of it. Road construction has hindered visitors to the area this summer, but Hanlon says someone who stops to charge their vehicle is likely to stop in the store as well.
“The only benefit we get is the spin-off, people who come in and buy a pop or a sandwich or a coffee,” said Hanlon. “There’s no money from Newfoundland Power coming to us.”
Though gas-powered is by far the predominant of the two options for automobiles, Hanlon allowed that people who have electric cars swear by them.
“It’s definitely not a fad,” said Hanlon, who noted his three sons are sold on the idea of buying an electric vehicle. “I think if I had the opportunity tomorrow to go into St. John’s and find one, I think I would buy it.”
“Whatever I buy now, I’m 70 years old, so it would probably be my last vehicle anyway,”
he joked. “I normally hang on to them for 10 or 12 years.”
