EV-ready parking spots should be required in new apartment builds: report

In this photo taken using a drone, parking spots designated for electric vehicles are seen outside a store in Ottawa, July 17, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

TORONTO — A newly released report suggests new apartments across Canada should be required to make their parking spots electric-vehicle ready as a way to help boost uptake.

The Clean Energy Canada report says provincial and federal building codes should be updated to require multi-unit apartment buildings to have parking spots fit for EV charging.

The think tank based at Simon Fraser University says more than one-third of EV owners who live in multi-unit buildings don’t have access to home charging, compared to just two per cent of those who live in single family homes.

The report says Quebec is the only province that requires homes to be EV-ready, but several cities such as Toronto and Vancouver have brought in their own mandates.

Some provinces, such as Nova Scotia, offer rebates to help cover the cost of chargers in existing or new buildings.

The report says installing an EV charger in a new build is about three to four times cheaper than upgrading an existing building.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 26, 2025.

Article written by Jordan Omstead, The Canadian Press