A programme in Scotland is being launched by BT which will convert old street cabinets once used for broadband and phone cables into electric vehicle charging points. Engineers will retrofit the cabinets with a device that enables renewable energy to be shared to a charge point alongside the existing broadband service, without the need to create a new power connection.
The inconvenience of charging an EV is a barrier to many considering buying one (78% of petrol and diesel drivers). In fact, 60% of Britons believe EV charging infrastructure is inadequate. Within the UK, almost 16,000 public chargers were installed as the size of network of ultra-rapid chargers for longer journeys doubled with an increase of 43% increase from 2022. Despite this, Rishi Sunak has delayed the ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by five years, to 2035. The sale of electric cars in 2023 fell to 16.5% compared with 16.6% the previous year.
In order to address key barriers customers are currently facing, Tom Guy, the managing director of Etc stated that the new charging solution brings EV charging kerbside and therefore tackles a "very real customer problem".
