In a move to encourage more people to switch to EVs, the Department for Transport has announced a plan to install more than 1,000 charge points in nine local authorities across the country.
This will be done through a new pilot backed by £20 million of government and industry funding announced on 24 August 2022. Barnet, Dorset, Durham, Kent, Midlands Connect (with Lincolnshire as a lead authority), North Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Suffolk, Warrington are among the winners of the pilot fund.
The pilot is backed by £10 million of government funding shared among the nine winning local authorities in the first tranche of the planned £450 million scheme, with winning pilot bids supported by an additional £9 million in private funding, the press release said. A further £1.9 million will come from public funds across local authorities, it added.
Through the innovative Local EV Infrastructure (LEVI) pilot scheme, local authorities and industry will work together to create new, commercial EV charging infrastructure for residents, from faster on-street charge points to larger petrol station-style charging hubs, the Department said.
“This scheme will help to level up electric vehicle infrastructure across the country, so that everyone can benefit from healthier neighbourhoods and cleaner air,” said Decarbonisation Minister Trudy Harrison.
Commenting on the occasion, AA president Edmund King OBE said: “It is essential that more on-street chargers are delivered to boost the transition to zero emission vehicles for those without home charging.”
The new LEVI fund builds on the success of the On-Street Residential Chargepoint Scheme (ORCS) which has seen nearly 2,900 charge points installed so far with funding provided for approaching 10,000 additional charge points in the future, the Department said.
Following growing demand from local authorities, the Department also announced a further £10 million in funding which has been brought forward for this year, bringing this year’s ORCS funding to £30 million to help maintain ongoing installations.
“Today’s announcement is a welcome step in the right direction, particularly as many of the local authorities involved in the programme have fewer public EV charging points than the national average of 48 per 100,000 of the population,” said Jon Lawes, Managing Director, Novuna Vehicle Solutions. “However, there is still a considerable way to go to provide adequate EV charging infrastructure – demand for electric vehicles continues to rise up and down the country, yet public charging provision is failing to keep pace with EV registrations and remains insufficient in the majority of parts of the UK.”