Watch where you park: Pueblo may soon ticket drivers for parking at EV charging stations
If you live in Pueblo but don’t own an electric vehicle, you might want to be more mindful about where you park your car.
The city of Pueblo may soon adopt an ordinance that would make it illegal to park a non-electric vehicle in designated EV charging spaces. Motorists who do so would commit a Class B traffic infraction, which is punishable with a fine.
Currently, the city’s two full-time parking enforcement officers have no legal jurisdiction to issue citations to people who park their non-electric cars in those spots. The Pueblo Police Department can deliver those types of citations, but the city prefers to keep police officers focused elsewhere.
The ordinance would adopt a state statute that prohibits non-electric vehicles from occupying EV-friendly spaces. The city’s parking enforcers, who are not sworn officers, would then be able to write tickets when they see an infraction, said Andrew Hayes, the city’s director of public works.
Revenues collected from any fines would go into the city’s general fund.
“As there are more and more electric vehicles on the road, the demand for public charging infrastructure is just going to increase. People parking in areas where they shouldn’t be parking will just strain the availability of those limited resources,” Hayes said. “We want to just make sure the enforcement tools are in place, if necessary.”
Pueblo has joined other Colorado cities in recent years in embracing electric vehicles and the charging stations that accompany them in a push to champion renewable energy. In 2022, the city installed Tesla supercharging stations in a parking lot across the street from the Pueblo Convention Center.
There are several more EV charging stations across the city, including at 114 S. Main St., 214 Grand Ave. and 210 W. Eighth St.
Atlas Public Policy data show that as of April, there was 622 battery-electric vehicles and 370 plug-in hybrids registered in Pueblo, a net increase of nearly 400 vehicles from late 2022. There are tens of thousands of EVs registered across the state, as some drivers gravitate toward the benefits and tax credits that electric vehicles offer.
“We’re seeing a lot of new electric vehicles among local residents, but we’re also on the crossroads of I-25 and Highway 50 at a major national highway network,” Hayes said. “Making sure that we have the right electrical infrastructure in place to serve all of those interests is important. This is just one little component to making sure that infrastructure remains available to local residents and travelers passing through.”
Pueblo City Council later this month will also consider accepting a $445,000 grant from the Colorado Energy Office to install four direct current fast-charging stations at the Main Street parking garage in downtown Pueblo. The city would pay another $400,000, a required match of the total project cost.
Unlike some of the city’s Level 2 chargers, the four new ones would be Level 3 chargers, which offer a much quicker recharge time.
The city is currently in the process of forming an EV readiness plan. Through the plan, the city wants to identify how to best facilitate access to public charging infrastructure, among other policies and regulations.
The ticketing ordinance was identified as a need before the city adopts the EV readiness plan, Hayes said.
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Chieftain reporter Josué Perez can be reached at JHPerez@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @josuepwrites. Support local news, subscribe to The Pueblo Chieftain at subscribe.chieftain.com.
This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Pueblo may adopt enforcing fine for unauthorized parking at EV stations
