Solar carports – 5 best practices

June 16, 2021 Priscilla

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The last few weeks have been sunny in the Netherlands. Summer is around the corner. A good moment to get inspired by Dutch use cases of solar solutions. Let’s talk about solar carports. Provinces & municipalities in the Netherlands share their best practices in the realisation of solar carports with the Park The Sun application.

1. Inform residents & businesses
Key to the energy transition is to activate residents & businesses. Therefore, the province of Noord-Holland organized a webinar about solar carports.

2. Identify low-hanging fruit
The filters in the application make it easy to find the top-10 most suitable parkings inside a municipality or neighborhood. This makes it easier to discuss & finalize solar carport plans. See an example below.

Use the filters for a top-10 most suitable parking spaces

3. Stimulate businesses
Multiple municipalities use Park the Sun to help businesses in the realisation of solar carports. Some tips to activate businesses:

Contact a selection of business that possess a parking lot suitable for solar carports
Offer coaching or financial support to perform an energy scan

4. Focus on sports associations
The location and parking lots of sports associations typically stay the same for years. This makes it a smart strategic choice for placing solar carports.

Easily check the solar potential at a sports association

5. Set the example
Take the initiative to become the first to build a public solar carport in your province/municipality. This way, you create awareness & set an example for others to follow. Furthermore, you will have the experience to support other municipalities + businesses in the realization of carports. A way to stimulate this inside your province is to offer a subsidy to municipalities.