Motorists who don’t have off-street parking are being “locked out of affordable electric vehicle charging” by cost, confusion and council delays, says non-profit EV champion EVA England.
So-called cross-pavement charging solutions – where electric cars parked on the road are charged from a cable plugged into the drivers’ home – are the answer, yet are being blocked by cost and red tape.
A survey by the organisation found that 93 percent of drivers who don’t have a driveway also don’t have any form of cross-pavement charging solution.
This is despite nearly 4 in 5 saying cross-pavement charging could work for their home.
The government has been running consultation into reform on planning rules for cross-pavement charging, and EVA England, in its submission, is urging ministers to act.
A mere eight drivers surveyed say they’ve been able to install a cross-pavement solution. Many others have had repeated refusals from councils, along with months (or even years) of silence and burdensome planning costs that can add around £500 per application.
This is on top of installation costs that approach £3,000.
Charging from the roadside
Cross-pavement charging solutions generally involve cutting a shallow cable gulley into the pavement. This is much safer than trailing charging cables across pavements and then attempting to cover them with mats.
Despite this, some drivers have been told cable gullies were unsafe, “while being tacitly allowed to trail charging cables across pavements… something many felt posed a far greater risk to pedestrians”.
EVA England now wants the government to ditch the need for a planning application to install an EV cable gulley.
“Drivers are telling us the same thing again and again,” said EVA England CEO Vicky Edmonds: “The demand is there, but the system is getting in the way.
“Cross-pavement charging could unlock affordable home charging for millions of households, yet too many drivers are stuck waiting, paying more, or putting off going electric entirely.
“This consultation is a real opportunity to remove one of the most frustrating and unnecessary barriers drivers face. We hope the government will act on it.”
It is estimated that more than 1 in 3 UK motorists park on-street.
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