current affairs
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Fail to plan – plan to fail he AA has said that more needs to be
done to promote on-street charging in order to meet the Department for Transport’s deployment estimates for electric vehicles. This is in response to figures which show that, despite a huge surge in electric vehicle uptake, the number of public charge points, especially in urban and rural areas, has not kept up.
and the overall mobility landscape is evolving. Too proud perhaps, to ask for an opinion? If LAs were to deploy consultancy before implementation, a ton of tax-payers’ cash could be saved by installing chargers that are fit for purpose. Proper insight and strategy will prevent the deployment of what are already “stranded assets”.
A LOST CAUSE? HOW MANY IS ENOUGH? Following the announcement of the LEVI fund in March, I The DfT’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Strategy outlines scheduled a call within three days to talk with key decision Tim Scrafton future chargepoint requirements, estimating that between makers in Birmingham City Council, who operate a Band 280,000 and 720,000 public charge points could be required Founder and COO D Clean Air Zone (CAZ), affecting all vehicles entering the of The Connect in 2030 to support the transition to EVs. zone. The AA has emphasised the need for action to make sure This was to discuss the availability of £450m LEVI Consultancy that these ambitious targets are met. This comes as no funding to deploy on-street charging and rapid DC surprise to me, nor I suspect to many readers! The AA is highlighting charging for drivers without private parking. Many of these are onwhat many of us know is a major issue for all professional drivers demand drivers desperately considering the need and requirement to switching to electric vehicles, whether they be taxi, private hire or switch to electric. delivery drivers. I was hoping for some progressive discussions on how we can deploy Unfortunately the majority of local authorities are not responding innovative ways to help drivers without private parking to go electric and to the level of Government support available, or matching the pace of use the public funds available to do so. EV uptake. They seem to be stuck in the metaphorical headlights of Instead, we were met with a complete stonewall. A blinkered panel of EVs, preferring to skirt the issue of planning and installing charging short-sighted decision makers who had already cemented their opinion infrastructure entirely or installing too little, far too late. on matters by announcing that they’d already committed to installing Only 87 out of almost 400 councils across the UK have applied for the rapid charging hubs. On-street charging wasn’t even open for discussion. on-street residential charging scheme (ORCS) since 2017 – a tiny £20 For Birmingham’s professional drivers, this means that any part of million pot made available 5 years ago, but a fund which is ongoing as the the £450m LEVI fund available for on-street and adjacent DC rapid money has yet to be spent! deployment has been dismissed. So if councils can’t spend £20m, what hope is there for the new RESTRICTION OF TRADE £450m Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) fund that was made available in April for councils to implement on-street charging and Considering the necessity of suitable on-street charging for on-demand additional rapid DC chargers? drivers without private parking, it is a travesty that decision makers The significance of this initiative and the size of the fund is are making the transition to EVs unviable for many on-demand drivers. considerable. It has the potential to make a huge difference, especially This to me, is a serious matter that could even constitute a restriction of to professional on-demand drivers. However, as is often the case, trade. implementation will be key. Is it any wonder that I feel anxious about LEVELLING UP this headline-grabbing announcement, considering past efforts to spend There are already issues around the vending of electricity for public infrastructure money up for grabs? charging which is liable to 20% VAT. Those with private parking are able LACK OF INTENTION AND A LACK OF INSIGHT to charge on far cheaper rates, off-peak, overnight from around 7p per Besides a lack of intent by the majority of LAs, those that are deploying kWh, and incurring only 5% VAT. chargers reveal a shocking lack of planning and co-ordination. There are lot’s of innovative ways to overcome the disparities between Those LAs that can be bothered to apply for funding and implement public and home charging that could level things up for those that either charging (with the exception of Oxford) do so in an outdated fashion, live in apartment blocks or houses without drives. But what hope is there unable to grasp the evolving requirements of EV drivers going forward. of making these happen if LAs are blinkered and ignorant to what can be This lack of insight simply means they are storing up problems, or done or what is actually needed? waiting for them to materialise. TAKING ACTION Besides consultancy services, my company provides installation If the government delegates the duty of implementing funds for on-street services and I find it immensely frustrating the number of chargers we charging to LAs, which then don’t act accordingly or appropriately, it is are contracted to deploy by LAs which I know are already past their ‘sellthe drivers and businesses who will suffer. by-date’ both in terms of their intrinsic design and the locations they are I believe it now needs to be mandatory for any LA that establishes a being installed. This is despite our best efforts to advise accordingly. CAZ to have to apply for LEVI funding and implement it in a proper valid The problem is that too many LAs have employed decision-makers in way, putting the needs of professional drivers first, and after meaningful positions who are out of their depth, and making decisions based on illconsideration of all the factors shaping our future mobility. conceived rationale. Does it frustrate you that funds are available and are not implemented? It is too late by the time we are brought in to install as the money has How does this influence your decisions regarding going electric? Have already been spent on what are essentially poor hardware and software your say, I’d love to hear from you. Get in touch and let me know! solutions. Slow charge points with the wrong connectors that might be OK for a first-generation EV built a decade ago, but are too slow to charge n T im Scrafton runs the Connect Consultancy, providing end-to-end the latest electric cars. strategy, insight, supply of EVs, chargers and installations. hello@ Few LAs consider the value of appraising options and consulting with theconnectconsultancy.com industry professionals who appreciate the speed in which the market
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