PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — Electric car drivers will soon have to pay some fees to charge their cars in Dunedin. It’s a change that begins in the new year.
“I wanted to do something for the environment, but mostly, it’s a fun car to drive. And it’s got, like a said before, a lot of power, and it’s just a very convenient car," said Rick Suntag, a resident in Dunedin.
Suntag is a big fan of his hybrid electric car.
“I absolutely love this car! It’s got an electric motor and a gas motor, so when I’m using both, it has a lot of power," said Suntag.
He moved to Dunedin a few years ago and said charging his car has been a breeze.
“There’s almost always one available, and all the times we’ve been here we try to charge almost exclusively on the town chargers," said Suntag.
Many charging stations in Dunedin have been free for the past five years, something Megan Javier has been taking advantage of since she got her car in 2020.
“Honestly, it’s been such a nice convenience for these three years to have it free and super close to where I work," said Javier.
But soon, that convenience will change. The pilot program between Duke Energy and the City of Dunedin, which allowed for free charging stations, is wrapping up on December 31.
Starting in the new year, it will cost money to charge electric cars.
“It’s just the way of the world. Nothing is free anymore," said Javier.
City leaders say it will cost $1.50 to plug into the charger, $0.20 per kilowatt used, and then another 5% transaction fee.
Many residents said they enjoy plugging in their car and then leaving their car in that spot for a few hours while they go to work or get a bite to eat, but soon there will be a fee in place that will charge people if they leave their car in that location after it’s fully charged for over 30 minutes.
Suntag said the change will deter drivers.
“Most of what I’m doing is topping it off, and that fee is going to make the prices seem even higher. It’s cheaper to charge at home overnight, which is probably what I will start doing now," said Suntag.
Javier said although she’s not looking forward to paying the fees, she’s just glad the charging stations are available.
“Everybody that has an electric vehicle is always excited when they find a free charger, especially if it’s in a convenient location, so it is a little bit of a bummer, but again, at least they aren’t taking them away," said Javier.
