Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 11 June 2019
763. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the changes he will introduce to prevent sleepers staying at electric vehicle charge points over and above the time necessary. [23577/19]
View answerThe majority of public chargers in use in Ireland are part of the ESB ecars network. Currently there are no fees for using this charging network which can lead to consumers using the network in place of charging at home or using it for longer than they need. I understand that ESB ecars intends to introduce fees for the use of fast chargers later this year and standard chargers in 2020. This will encourage electric vehicle drivers to charge at home where possible thus ensuring the public chargers have a higher level of availability.
In relation to the use of spaces for electric vehicle charging, there is existing legislation in place, namely the Road Traffic (Traffic and Parking) Regulations 1997 to 2014 (S.I. No. 182 of 1997) as amended by the Road Traffic (Traffic and Parking) (Car Clubs and Electrically Powered Vehicles) Regulations 2014 (S.I. No. 325 of 2014). These regulations explicitly prohibit a non-electric vehicle stopping or parking in designated spaces and outlines how these spaces are only to be used by electric vehicles while being recharged. The enforcement of this legislation is a matter for An Garda Síochána and for Local Authority traffic wardens.
