Southwark Council is launching a network of 50 lamppost electric vehicle charge points after partnering with char.gy to deliver installations in two areas of the borough.
Two chargers are already live, with plans to roll out the rest of the network across Borough & Bankside and Dulwich by the end of January.
Char.gy designs and manufactures the units, which are rated at 7.7kW charging speed. However, due to the availability of power from the lampposts, these are reduced to around 5.3kW in most instances.
Lamp post charging has become an area of interest for local authorities, particularly those in London, as they offer a solution to residents without off street parking without adding to existing street furniture.
In addition, char.gy can offer load management across multiple chargers, queuing or delaying charging periods or reducing speeds at times of grid constraint.
Richard Stobart, chief executive of char.gy, said: “Char.gy offers easy, affordable, open-access EV charging without the need to dig-up residential streets across Southwark to lay additional cables or add on-street electricity cabinets. We look forward to offering this convenient means of on-street charging as a vital step towards reducing vehicle emissions across London.”
Residents are able to use a standard (Type 2) charging cable into the char.gy unit and enter the location of the unit into their device’s browser to begin charging, or via charge point’s dedicated URL.
The browser application tariffs, payments and offers locations for the nearest char.gy points. In addition to this open access, EV drivers are also able to choose a membership offering ‘pay-as-you-go’ or tariff packages.
Councillor Richard Livingstone, cabinet member for environment, transport management and air quality at Southwark Council, said: “These new charge points are making it easier than ever for people who live in Southwark to make the switch to electric vehicles.”