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Charging ahead – government plans to increase the provision of EV chargepoints
With the deadline for the end of the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans now just seven years away, attention is increasingly turning to the provision of the public EV charging infrastructure currently available across the UK.
UK ONLY HAS A FRACTION OF CHARGEPOINTS REQUIRED
The UK has around 34,637 public EV chargepoints, according to figures released in October 2022 by the Department for Transport (DfT). But this is just 11.55% of the 300,000 chargepoints the government has predicted that the nation will require by 2030, according to the UK Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Strategy report published last year.
WIDE REGIONAL DISPARITIES
While the Greater London area within the M25, the south east of England and Scotland are well provided for, there are other areas of the UK, particularly the north east and Northern Ireland, where the current provision of public EV chargepoints can be described as patchy at best.
£56 MILLION FUNDING TO INCREASE NATIONWIDE PROVISION
To address this issue, the government recently announced £56 million of public and industry funding to increase the provision of electric vehicle (EV) chargepoints across England.
Making the announcement on 21 February 2023, Transport Minister Jesse Norman said the funding would help to deliver up to 2,400 chargepoints set to be installed in the short term, while working to support local councils to deliver tens of thousands more in the long term.
DELIVERING COMPREHENSIVE CHARGING NETWORKS
The funding will expand the current Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) Pilot, boost the existing On-Street Residential Chargepoint Scheme (ORCS) and help councils across England secure dedicated resources to develop in-house expertise and capability to coordinate chargepoint plans and work with private operators – delivering a more comprehensive and reliable network of chargepoints for drivers.
In addition to expanding three of the original LEVI pilot schemes, in Barnet, Durham and North Yorkshire, the announcement included the launch of 16 new pilot scheme areas across England, from Cumbria in the north to Sussex in the south.
Minister Norman said: “The government is giving local authorities across England additional help to energise their chargepoint roll-out plans. [This] commitment will lead to thousands of new chargers being installed, and plans for tens of thousands extra in due course, so that more people than ever can make the transition to using EVs.”
HELPING COUNCILS AND BUSINESS TO WORK TOGETHER
In total, £22 million of government funding for the pilot areas is supported by an additional £17 million of private funding, and £2 million from public funds across local authorities. In addition to expanding the pilot scheme, an £8 million LEVI Capability Fund was launched, which is designed to equip local authorities with the skills and ambition to scale up their plans when it comes to their charging strategy. The funding will help local authorities and private business work together to grow local networks and deliver more ambitious chargepoint plans for their area.
In a further boost for the public EV chargepoint network, the government brought forward a further £7 million funding for the existing On-Street Residential Chargepoint Scheme (ORCS), bringing the total funding to £37 million this year. So far 3,000 chargepoints have been installed under ORCS, with a further 10,000 in the pipeline. These announcements bring the total amount the government has spent on supporting the move to zero emission vehicles to £2 billion.
NEEDS OF COMMERCIAL VEHICLE SECTOR MUST NOT BE NEGLECTED
While hailing the announced £56 million as a much-needed step forwards on the route to net zero, Logistics UK has urged government to factor the charging requirements of the commercial vehicle sector into any developments.
“Local authorities must ensure that any new public EV chargepoint installation and infrastructure provides adequate electric vehicle charging facilities with sufficient space for use by commercial vehicles,” said Denise Beedell, Senior Policy Manager, Logistics UK, “An immediate uplift in the number of public chargepoints that can be used by battery electric vans and a recognition of the future needs of battery electric trucks, is vital to give the logistics sector the confidence to invest in zero emission at the tailpipe vehicles.”
*www.logistics.org.uk/environment
Published On: 09/03/2023 16:00:43
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