Corte Madera is ramping up enforcement at its electric vehicle charging stations.

The Town Council voted unanimously at its meeting July 1 to add its seven charging stations spots to the town’s list of no-parking zones, allowing staff to impose a $40 fine. The new rules are in response to drivers using the spots to park all day, regardless of whether they need a charge.

Installing electric vehicle charging stations is a longtime goal of town leaders, said Phoebe Goulden, the town’s climate coordinator. In January, the town installed its first public charging stations: five at Town Hall and two at Town Park.

Prior to installation, the Town Council passed a resolution to charge a base rate of $0.42 per kilowatt hour. The ordinance included an overstay fee of $1 per hour after four hours — with a 15-minute grace period to move the vehicle — capped at $50. The overstay fee applied to 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. to allow residents to use the stations overnight.

“These fees may need to be adjusted in the future to align with the actual operating costs of the stations,” Goulden said regarding the base rate.

Goulden noted that the goal is to keep the stations “revenue neutral.” The base rate is in the middle to upper range for public electric vehicle charging in the county, according to a staff report.

The average time vehicles are at the charging station is 2.7 hours, Goulden said. She said town staff have both observed violations and received complaints about the charging stations.

Some park in the spaces all day, either after finishing charging or without charging at all. The municipal code lacked a provision to cite those offenders, Goulden said.

The vendor, Blink, is unable to implement all parts of the overstay fee, such as pausing the fee overnight or charging a fee after four hours, for example, according to the staff report.

The council vote also rescinded the electric vehicle ordinance’s overstay fee. A fee escalator will remain in place, as will the base charging rate.

The new rules would go into effect 30 days after a second reading of the ordinance, set for Aug. 5. Town staff plan to update the signage around the charging stations, as well as restripe the spots, Goulden said. There also would be some warnings before issuing citations.

“Do you think this will work as a deterrent?” Councilmember Fred Casissa asked.

Goulden said most people would likely follow the regulations once the signs are clear.