Where are the road signs for public EV chargers?

New public charge points are being installed across the country at a record rate, with the industry on track to meet the government’s public charging targets by 2030 (National Audit Office). However, public perception remains that there is a lack of charging infrastructure and is one of the main reasons drivers do not make the switch to electric.

Visibility of the widespread charging infrastructure is poor. This is because the majority of the UK’s 72,000+ public charge points cannot legally be signposted from the nearby road. The only charging facilities that can have signs are those that are part of a services, or that have been given specific local council approval.

Control over signage sits with National Highways for the Strategic Road Network (SRN) and with Council Highways Officers at the local level.

A SRN services sign is only allowed if minimum requirements are met, one of those being the provision of petrol/diesel pumps. So an EV-only refuelling service area cannot be signposted. Furthermore, strict signage size rules and long-term fast-food contracts means that in practice there often isn’t space for the EV charging symbol to be added to existing services signage. The Sunday Times reported that only 25 of the UK’s EV re-charging facilities on motorways have signage.

In a handful of successful non-SRN cases, it has taken over 12 months to have a single, non-branded EV charging sign installed beside a road. This is because, at the local level, there is no standardised process with any Council that covers EV charging signage. This means charging networks have to apply via a non-standard sign route, which differs wildly by council and is rarely approved due to council Highways Officers being unwilling to set a precedent.

The current guidance and regulations are outdated in their insistence on petrol pumps, and without clear provision beyond service areas, are not an effective basis for approval processes for signage for EV-only refuelling hubs.

Consumers need to see it to believe it. In every major European country, road signage for EV charging is standard, not only directing existing EV drivers but instilling confidence in would-be EV drivers that the recharging network is there. 

Without this signage, UK drivers are unaware of the existing, extensive public charging network. Allowing clear, consistent signage will boost confidence and support demand for EVs across all sales channels, but particularly in the under-represented retail consumer market.

Charge point operators (CPOs) are delivering high-power EV infrastructure ahead of demand and are meeting government targets. However, these businesses are pre-profit and need strong utilisation to recoup their investment, and to secure further investment from global funds. CPOs are spending upwards of £6-8bn on UK infrastructure to 2030, as long as confidence continues. The inability to alert drivers to a CPO’s large hub locations is a major concern both for the business case for investment but also the wider visibility of, and therefore confidence in, the EV transition in the UK.

The current local signage process is time-consuming and bureaucratic, requiring special permission to be granted, with no clear guidance for CPOs or the local council’s authorising person to follow. Councils are understandably reluctant to set precedents by permitting signage. Setting out permission criteria and streamlining the process would allow both the CPO and local highways personnel to focus on delivering critical infrastructure.

In the short term an updated, clear set of criteria and clear application and approval process is needed for the use of a generic, non-branded EV charging symbol on new and existing SRN (Strategic Road Network) signage, and on signage on local authority-controlled roads.

Provision needs to be made in the Regulations and Guidance for EV-only refuelling facilities, such that those that meet minimum criteria can be signed from the SRN without the need for petrol pumps. Reflecting the way that electric driving habits are different from petrol, signage provision should not only include guidance for motorway service-area facilities but also for major A-road charging facilities, for example at mixed-use retail locations. This could be limited to sites of a certain size and significance to ensure signage is targeted at the most important sites for consumer confidence.

In the long term, an updated symbol to reflect high-power charging should be developed. The symbol that exists in current guidance displays a 3-pin plug which is highly misleading for public charging.

With clear rules and a simple process for applying and installing signage, CPOs who are spending billions building the nation’s infrastructure can simultaneously boost consumer confidence by literally signposting the thousands of public charge points up and down the country.

Sources: 

https://www.nao.org.uk/reports/public-chargepoints-for-electric-vehicles/

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2016/362/contents

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/strategic-road-network-and-the-delivery-of-sustainable-development/strategic-road-network-and-the-delivery-of-sustainable-development#annex-a-roadside-facilities-tables