Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 13 June 2023
277. Deputy Patrick Costello asked the Minister for Transport if his Department has considered adapting street lamp-posts to also have charge points for electric vehicles; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27461/23]
View answerThe Government is fully committed to supporting a significant expansion and modernisation of the electric vehicle (EV) charging network over the coming years. Having an effective and reliable charging network is an essential part of enabling drivers to make the switch to electric vehicles.
Home charging is the primary charging method for most Irish EV owners as it’s convenient and cheaper for the consumer as well as assisting in the overall management of the national grid. Over 80% of charging is expected to happen at home.
However, there is also a need for a seamless public charging network that will provide for situations or instances where home charging is not possible, such as on-street and residential charging, destination charging and workplace charging.
Zero Emission Vehicles Ireland (ZEVI), a dedicated Office which oversees and accelerate Ireland’s transition to zero emission vehicles, has significant funding available in 2023 for the installation of EV charging across Ireland.
In January, I launched the National Strategy for the development of EV charging infrastructure, covering the crucial period out to 2025, alongside an Implementation Plan. The strategy sets out the government’s ambition regarding the delivery of a public EV charging network to support up to 195,000 electric cars and vans by the middle of the decade.
A range of new charging infrastructure schemes are being developed which will help provide another critical link in the overall network for public charging.
A new Residential Neighbourhood Charging Scheme will be launched by ZEVI for Local Authorities to provide EV charging for residents without access off street parking. This EV charging will be designed to mimic home charging and will incentivise off-peak charging in a location convenient to the resident’s home. In addition to this we will be working with local authorities to support them creating local charging plans to be rolled out in the coming years
The Department of Transport is actively engaged in supporting the Local Authorities, who manage the local lighting lamppost infrastructure, in the development of EV infrastructure strategies. The Local Authority strategies will look at destination and local neighbourhood solutions that are appropriate to their specific locations to meet the projected publicly accessible charging needs and these plans may well include lamppost charging where suitable, among a range of possible solutions to charging demand.
