12 projects set to receive almost £40m to revolutionise the experience of owning an electric vehicle in the UK
Innovations to receive investment include solar-powered forecourts, underground charging systems and EV wireless charging systems
Government aims for these innovations to encourage uptake of electric vehicles – a key aim of the Road to Zero strategy which celebrates one-year anniversary
Today (Tuesday 9 July), the Government announces it is investing £37m into British engineering to transform electric chargepoint infrastructure, revolutionising the experience for the record levels of ultra-low emission vehicle drivers on UK roads.
12 projects are set to receive a share of the funding, to support the creation of innovations including wireless charging technologies, meaning electric vehicles of the future could charge without the need to plug in a cable.
The news comes on the one-year anniversary of the Government’s Road to Zero strategy, which has driven a 60% increase in battery electric vehicle registrations this year compared to the same period in 2018.
Future of Mobility Minister, Michael Ellis, said:
“We’re charging up the transport revolution and investing in technologies to transform the experience for electric vehicle drivers.
“Ensuring the charging infrastructure for electric vehicles is reliable and innovative is encouraging more people to join the record numbers of ultra-low emission vehicle users already on UK roads.â€
The Road to Zero strategy sets out new measures to clean up road transport and lead the world in developing, manufacturing and using zero emission road vehicles. Through funding these projects, the Government is incentivising drivers to move towards buying electric vehicles, supporting the key aims of the strategy.
Urban Foresight, a smart city consultancy, has been awarded over £3 million to roll out ‘pop-up’ chargers which are built into the pavement and provide a discreet, safe and low-cost charging solution for electric vehicle drivers without access to off-street parking.
Further projects to receive funding include:
A renovation project, installing chargepoints in car parks to allow for mass charging at night.
A project leveraging existing Virgin Media physical and online infrastructure to deliver cost-effective and widespread charging, using high speed internet connections to better share information online on charging progress and parking spaces.
A cutting edge storage and advanced electronics project that will deliver semi-rapid charging using a low power grid connection minimising the need for costly substation upgrades.
Char.gy, an electric charging company has been awarded over £2.3 million and will use the funding to develop deploy wireless charging technology on residential streets without the need for trailing cables and additional infrastructure.
Initial three-month feasibility studies have been completed and successful projects are moving onto the next stage of development.
The announcement is another milestone for the Government’s Future of Mobility Grand Challenge, which aims to tap into the extraordinary innovation across the country in order to make every day journeys greener, safer, easier and more reliable.
