Positive signs for EV charging
Positive news from the Transport Secretary, Heidi Alexander, over the weekend that:
- Larger EV charging hubs may now be sign-posted on major A roads for the first time (with local highways regulations expected to follow suit);
- £25m of funding for local authorities to support access to EV charging at home for households without driveways (using ‘charge-gullies’ to run cabling under pavements);
- £8m of funding for the NHS to power the electrification of ambulances and medical fleets across 200 NHS sites; and
- grant funding to help businesses install charging points at depots to support e-HGVs, vans and coaches.
These measures have been widely welcomed by the industry and – along with calls to equalize VAT on public vs at home charging (still awaited) – have been the subject of industry campaigning for some time.
In particular, the relaxation of signage rules is seen as an ‘easy win’ for the Government.
Previous regulations prevented signage for EV charging facilities on the UK’s strategic road network unless various criteria were met, namely that the location also includes petrol/diesel pumps as well as various additional requirements which effectively blocked the provision of signage for EV charging facilities. Earlier this year, the Sunday Times reported that only 25 charging points across the entirety of the UK were advertised with motorway signage.
The installation of EV chargers has progressed rapidly (over 80,000 across the UK and with the number of EV charging hubs having more than doubled in just over 2 years) but drivers of ICE vehicles need to see for themselves that EV chargers exist on their routes before they feel confident in making the shift (particularly those without access to chargers at their home).
Further announcements are expected later this week (re: incentive packages for those purchasing EVs) but these measures continue the trend we’ve seen this year of removing red tape which stand in the way of the UK’s EV transition.
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