The trial is being funded by a £169,000 government grant
A North London council is to launch a new trial that it hopes will help make electric vehicle (EV) use “more affordable and convenient”. It will assess the suitability of EV pavement channels as a way for owners to charge their cars at home without cables, which can create trip hazards.
Brent Council’s Cabinet approved the trial at a meeting earlier this week (July 27), which is being funded by a £169,000 grant from the government. If successful, it will be rolled out in more locations across the borough.
The trial aims to “gauge the suitability of electric vehicle pavement channels”, which the council has said helps EV owners without driveways or garages charge their cars while parked on the street. The local authority will take the scheme forward if the evidence shows that it is “safe, practical and [of] good value”.
The trial will focus particularly on blue-badge holders, many of whom cannot easily travel without a private car. However, other residents may still register their interest in participating. Cabinet Member for Cleaner Streets, Transport & Public Realm, Cllr Promise Knight, said: “[It] will help us understand whether another charging option can work safely and effectively for Brent.”
Drivers using public charging infrastructure have to pay 20 per cent in Value Added Tax (VAT) on the electricity they use, while private users are charged just 5 per cent. At a time when many Brent residents are facing significant cost-of-living pressures, the local authority claims that this additional expense “can be a barrier to electric car uptake”.
Cllr Knight added: “This trial is an important step towards making electric vehicle use more affordable and convenient for more Brent residents. Petrol and diesel vehicles account for 22 per cent of emissions in Brent, and the pollution they cause directly harms the health of local people.
“Although Brent is seeking to reduce the number of journeys made by car in the borough, which will reduce congestion and improve safety for other road users, we recognise that some residents depend on a private car, such as those with mobility issues and disabilities. It is vital that these residents are supported to make the switch to electric. Convenient, cheap car charging infrastructure is vital to this.”
The early results will be reviewed after six months, and if successful, the trial will be expanded to additional locations to use up the remaining government grant received. After 12 months, a decision will be made on whether to roll it out across the borough for more residents.
Harlesden ward councillor, Matt Kelcher, said “very few” people in his area have driveways, so the measure would go down well with local residents. He said: “It’s a lot of converted houses and small front gardens […] So I absolutely know that the lamppost charging points and others that we’ve had in already have been popular and this will be an option I know people will definitely be keen on.”
Brent Council Leader, Cllr Muhammed Butt, added: “[…] making sure that things are made as easy as possible to support the transition [to EV use] is something that I think is positive and [we] should be trying to do. Hopefully, the trial will be a positive outcome for some of those residents going forward as well.”
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