Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure professionals have heard how parking management techniques can be used to improve the efficiency of EV charging networks by increasing the amount of time they are in use.
The synergies between charging and parking were examined at a Transport Technology EV Charging Infrastructure Working Group meeting in Bolton, sponsored by Grid Smarter Cities.
Grid explained how its Kerb platform, which is used to allow freight companies and others book places at the kerbside, can be integrated with EV charging to allow companies to pre-book charging where they will already be stopped. Saving operators some of the 3m hours of wasted delivery driver time each year, while also providing drivers with a welfare break opportunity and reduction in charging anxiety. This would have the advantage to local authorities of reduced harmful emissions, congestion and a new revenue stream, with the chargepoint operators gaining a higher utilisation of their on-street assets.
Analysis by parking solutions company AppyWay suggested that, on average, while on-street EV Bays are occupied 40% of the time, on-street EV charge point utilisation rates are less than 15%. This means that, in theory, authorities have to provide more chargers than necessary because of the inefficient use of time. The analysis also showed how councils can use data to predict how many chargers they might need and where to place them.
Certain myths about charging were discussed, including the fear of residential disharmony over people installing charging equipment outside their houses and therefore demanding to park there, which, the meeting was told, was less of an issue than feared. In fact, residential WhatsApp groups sharing details of when people are using chargers offered a chance of better neighbourly engagement, it heard.
Charging gullies, in-pavement chargers and overhead charging solutions were all profiled during the event, while there was also an update from OZEV and Transport for the North. Mobius Networks also gave a stark warning about cyber security dangers around charging infrastructure, and some advice on how to avoid falling foul of the hackers.
An update about the EV Charging Infrastructure Working Group will be given at the TTF Conference at Leonardo Hotel Hinckley Island in Leicestershire on 24 and 25 April. Presentations from this meeting are available on the Working Group’s page on the TTF website.
You can see the presentations here.
(Picture shows Toby Hiles of Grid Smarter Cities addressing the meeting – courtesy TTF)
