The electric vehicle network is expanding, but unevenly. The risk is disabled drivers will feel left behind.
More than half of all councils in England believe balancing the need for charge point accessibility with local constraints is becoming problematic. This is especially true when it comes to narrow streets with limited width and competing requirements for dense clusters of households. In London, this rises to 90% amongst borough authorities, emphasising that the most populated UK areas are likely to struggle the most in this area.
EV charge point operator Believ recently published its Local Authority Insight Report, which also shows that councils want practical support for infrastructure rollout. 42% nationally, and 60% of powers within the British capital want to see additional guidance from Downing Street on how to improve accessibility and equity within the network. The same percentage currently have an ‘accessibility plan’ in place, but 4% are not considering disabled access, while 37% are were not sure their teams were working on such plans.
‘As the EV transition gathers pace, we must ensure no driver is left behind,’ says Guy Bartlett, Believ CEO. ‘Some local authorities are working hard to expand accessible charging provision, but many are facing real-world constraints, particularly where streets are narrow and space is limited.
‘Our research shows that local authorities are currently unclear on best practice – this needs to change,’ he continued. ‘While the solutions are not always straight-forward, they are available. So, the answer is not to compromise on inclusion, but to provide the guidance and support councils need to implement accessibility confidently and consistently.’
Introduced in 2022, the British Standards Institution recommends electric vehicle charge points meet PAS 1899, a voluntary best-practice specification focused on accessibility of public charge infrastructure. This includes minimum requirements for space, layout and ease of use. Advocates for improving access to equipment now want to see this recommendation become a mandatory order for all operators, and council partners.
‘Some local authorities are working hard to expand accessible charging provision, but many are facing real-world constraints, particularly where streets are narrow and space is limited,’ added Bartlett. ‘Our research shows that local authorities are currently unclear on best practice – this needs to change. While the solutions are not always straight-forward, they are available. So, the answer is not to compromise on inclusion, but to provide the guidance and support councils need to implement accessibility confidently and consistently.’
Image: Ingo Zöll / Unsplash
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