A new electric vehicle charging forecourt with a café and convenience store is taking shape near Norwich.

Sustainable power firm Gridserve is under way with the electric vehicle forecourt on the Broadland Gate Business Park, near the Northern Distributor Road (NDR) at Postwick.

The Norwich site will feature 34 high-speed charging bays, a coffee shop, convenience store and an airport-style lounge with high-speed wifi.

The bays will include 12 ultra-rapid, 12 rapid, eight branded and two HGV chargers, which will provide charge times quicker than 30 minutes.

Toddington Harper, chief executive of Gridserve, said: “Our mission is to deliver sustainable energy and move the needle on climate change, and that is exactly what we are doing – delivering.

“Getting people into electric vehicles is a big part of our vision but to do that, charging has to be simple and free of anxiety, which is why we’ve designed our network entirely around the needs of drivers and listening to our customers’ needs to deliver the confidence people need to make the switch to electric transport - eight years ahead of the 2030 ban on petrol and diesel cars.”

As well as the Norwich site, the company has also started construction of another electric forecourt at Gatwick Airport located on the south approach to the airport’s South Terminal and adjacent to the M23.

It forms part of a vast motorway electric vehicle charging upgrade.

Gridserve has also announced that it is planning to create more than 20 electric hubs, with each incorporating six to 12 high-power chargers with contactless payment.

These are set to open at motorway stations across the UK by the second quarter of 2022 – with most expected to be installed by the end of March.

Speaking when the fuel crisis hit in September, Leon Davies, from Norwich, who set up ABC Taxis in 2018, said the firm hopes to ensure its entire fleet of more than 240 vehicles is hybrid or electric in the future.

Speaking to this paper, he said: “Norfolk is quite a special place and ABC is undertaking a huge investment. We were waiting for the infrastructure, and it's now coming.”