Hundreds of electric vehicle charging points are set to be installed across Hertfordshire, after the county council was awarded more than £6 million in central government funding.

The funding is designed to accelerate the rollout of low-power, public charging points to support drivers of electric vehicles who do not have driveways to charge at home.

At a meeting of the council's environment, transport and growth cabinet panel on Tuesday (December 16), councillors heard that the charging points could be installed across the county from next year.

Contracts to deliver the charging points across Hertfordshire are reported to have been awarded to, but not yet signed by, three separate operators.

According to the report presented to the panel, Zest Eco Ltd has been awarded the contract to install more than 510 charge points across North Herts, St Albans and Welwyn Hatfield.

Believ Ltd has been selected to install more than 570 charge points across Dacorum, Hertsmere, Three Rivers and Watford.

Urban Fox Networks Ltd has been earmarked to install 420 charge points across East Herts, Broxbourne and Stevenage.

Updating councillors, officer Sue Jackson said the Department for Transport had been keen to ensure that there was not a "county-wide monopoly" with a single charging point operator.

She said contracts had been awarded to different operators to install the charging points in the three areas of the county.

Those operators are now understood to be working with the county council to agree on suitable sites.

Subject to the signing of contracts, councillors heard that installation of the charge points on streets could be implemented next year.

Nevertheless, at the meeting, Conservative Cllr Steve Wortley – himself an EV driver – urged caution.

Pointing to a slowdown in uptake of EVs, he expressed concern that investment could be made in infrastructure that might be underused, poorly located or obsolete.

He said: "I think we have just been put in an awkward position here of betting big on this project while national government policy is wobbling.

"Ask me three months ago, I would be welcoming this, as an EV driver. I just feel we're in an awkward position and we shouldn't get quite as carried away with the excitement of this as perhaps we could have done."

But executive member for environment, transport and growth, Cllr Paul Zukowskyj said: "We are where we are.

"The grant that has come down the line has been provided to us to deliver this system.

"We are delivering the system. And the ongoing economic risk is on the charge point operators for the LEVI scheme.

"So I don't think that the county council itself is exposed to any of those risks. It is the commercial companies. And they have a decision to make, don't they?"

As well as capital funding of £6,015,000 from the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Programme, the county council has been awarded a further £1,015,000 capability funding from the government's Office for Zero Emissions Vehicles (OZEV).

According to a report presented to councillors, the contract will require charge point operators to contribute a significant share of investment and to bear the ongoing operational costs and risks.

• At the same meeting, it was reported that the county council was conducting a trial of cross-pavement channels, which could be used by residents without driveways to charge electric vehicles from their home supply.

The six-month pilot is running in St Albans. If successful, councillors heard it could be rolled out across the county next summer.