Charging your car should get easier with the EV Infrastructure Strategy
The new Government Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Strategy aims to ensure that motorists can easily charge their electric cars, as the numbers of EVs on our roads rise.
The strategy focuses on public charging, with £1.6 billion committed to help increase the number of public chargers to around 300,000 by 2030.
New legal requirements for operators will see drivers of EVs able to pay by contactless, compare charging prices and find nearby chargepoints via apps.
The aim is to improve the consumer experience at all chargepoints, with significant support for people without access to off-street parking, and for fast charging on longer journeys. For people without driveways, a £450 million Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) fund will boost projects such as EV hubs and on-street charging.
At least 6,000 rapid chargepoints on England’s motorways will continue to be rolled out by 2035 as part of the existing £950 million Rapid Charging Fund.
Another development that’s already underway is that chargepoint operators are currently installing an additional 15,000 rapid chargepoints across England’s entire road network – a quadrupling of the current offer – and over 100,000 on-street chargepoints by 2025.
The government is mandating that operators provide real-time data about chargepoints. It is ensuring that consumers can compare prices and pay for their charging easily using contactless cards. They will also be able to use apps to find their nearest available chargepoint. The plans will also require a 99% reliability rate at rapid chargepoints.
‘Taking Charge: The Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Strategy’ is available to download here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-electric-vehicle-infrastructure-strategy
Alongside the EV Infrastructure Strategy, the government has also published its Response To The Consumer Experience At Public Chargepoints Consultation: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/the-consumer-experience-at-public-electric-vehicle-chargepoints
Research has also been published on the future charging needs and preferences of UK drivers without off-street parking: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/public-electric-vehicle-charging-infrastructure-drivers-without-access-to-off-street-parking