The mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has set out his plans for a major expansion of London’s electric vehicle-charging network, including an electric vehicle (EV) charging hub to be operational by the end of the year.
The mayor's Electric Vehicle (EV) Infrastructure Taskforce based the plan around addressing 'the barriers to scaling up existing infrastructure' and argued against 'a prescriptive, target-based approach to 2025'.
Currently the roll-out of the charging infrastructure is in the line with the demand for electric vehicles but London needs an electric revolution, Transport for London said.
Mr Khan said: 'We need to reject the fossil fuels of the past and embrace an electric revolution in London’s transport.'
The Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Taskforce brought together representatives from business, energy, infrastructure, government and the London boroughs. The past year has seen more than 140 organisations contribute to the work of the Taskforce.
Projections
'The modelling for this plan gives us confidence the current delivery schedule in London by the private and public sector, consisting of over 300 rapid charge points and over 3,500 slow to fast chargers by the end of 2020, will be sufficient to deal with the expected uptake of electric vehicles,' it said.
'By 2020, using prudent EV uptake assumptions, we could need around 200 to 400 rapid charge points and 3,400 to 4,700 slow to fast charge points. By 2025, with EV uptake in line with the MTS and London’s 1.5 degree plan, this could rise to between 2,300 to 4,100 rapid charge points and 33,700 to 47,500 slow to fast charge points.
'The expectation of the taskforce is that the numbers of points suggested in the report would be delivered primarily by the private sector but further support from the Government may be needed.'
London has around 20,000 electric vehicles, 1,700 electric taxis and Europe’s largest electric bus fleet and future expansion builds on TfL’s successful roll-out of over 175 rapid charge points across the city (delivering a full charge in 20 - 30 minutes) and a growing network of over 1,100 lamp post charging points delivered by boroughs in residential areas.
Actions
The Taskforce and other industry partners will support the mayor in driving forward a number of initiatives in the plan including:
- installing the next generation of ultra-rapid charging points at London petrol stations later this year
- delivering five flagship charging hubs, with the ability for multiple cars to quickly be charged in one place. The first of these hubs will be operational in the heart of the Square Mile by the end of the year.
- anew ‘one-stop-shop’ for Londoners to request new charging infrastructure from their local authority in areas of high demand led by London Councils, making it easier for drivers to switch to electric vehicles
- expanding electric car clubs and bringing more vehicles to market, offering greater choice to Londoners and businesses
- new online smart tools to ensure London’s energy grid continues to keep pace with demand and to help unlock private sector investment
National Infrastructure Commission chair Sir John Armitt said in response: 'More action will needed– such as the ban on new diesel HGV sales by 2040 we recommended in our recent report on freight and reinforcing the electricity network - if we’re to meet the UK’s climate change targets and clean up the air in London and other cities.
'The government should Charge Up Britain by committing to a truly national rapid charging network and give cities new powers over transport so they can follow London’s example.'
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