London’s Wandsworth to install 525 lamppost chargers

The London Borough of Wandsworth has appointed Ubitricity to roll out a network of 525 public electric vehicle charge points, bringing the borough’s total number of public EV chargers up to nearly 1,500.

Along with the 525 new EV charging points to be installed in the London Borough of Richmond, Ubitricity will roll out a network of 1,050 new 5 kW lamppost chargers in the boroughs.

The Wandsworth government says the upcoming density of 1,500 charging points in the district is more than “virtually everywhere else in the country”. However, other London boroughs are charging ahead fast. Last year, Westminster said it was targeting over 2,000 on-street charge points.

These 525 charge points in London’s Wandsworth this summer will be new 5kW lamppost chargers, the speciality of Ubitricity. Wandsworth borough notes that charging sockets fitted to lamposts reduce pavement clutter and keep footpaths free for pedestrians.

The chargers are partly funded by a £300,000 grant from the Department for Transport via the Office for Zero Emissions Vehicles’ On-street Residential Chargepoint Scheme (ORCS).

The Wandsworth council says that its own fleet of cars, vans and lorries is being replaced by electric versions, saying vaguely, “All will eventually go electric as suitable vehicles become available.” Greater London has its own targets for transport decarbonisation. Just last month, The Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez) was expanded to include all of London’s boroughs today. Driving a non-compliant vehicle anywhere in the zone will incur a charge of 12.50 pounds per day.

In April this year, the UK government’s Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) fund invested £35.7 million in London’s electric vehicle charging infrastructure across all 32 boroughs and the City of London.

Toby Butler, ubitricity’s UK Managing Director, said: “The current surge in EV sales is driving increased demand for charging facilities, and this can create issues for drivers who don’t have access to off-street charging where they live. By expanding their EV charge point network to provide convenient facilities for both residents and businesses using electricity from 100 per cent renewable sources, Wandsworth Council is making the transition to EV easier and helping give drivers the confidence to make the switch.”

wandsworth.gov.uk