Installation work is well underway in the London borough of Merton to extend the on-street charger network, ensuring that 78,000 residents without driveways can access at least one charge point within a two minute walk of their front door.

The first half of the char.gy devices are now installed, with the remaining chargers due to be deployed within the next four to six weeks – this triples the number from 259 at the start of January 2023 to 789, meaning Merton now has more public chargers for residents than any other outer London borough.

The new installation includes six accessible lamppost charge points to cater for disabled motorists, which will be installed within close proximity to disabled parking bays and at an appropriate height for wheelchair users.

Zap-Pay partner char.gy has a competitive night-time charge rate of 29p/KWh from midnight to 7am, and as national energy demand is typically around 30% lower overnight, char.gy’s night-time charging solution puts less strain on the national grid.

“As a Merton resident myself, I’m delighted that char.gy has been included in Merton’s plan to provide residents in the borough with a three-fold substantial increase in on-street charging infrastructure,” said Richard Stobart, founder of char.gy.

“We believe our no-cost, quick installation and shared revenues for councils, together with our reliable, renewables-based charging service for motorists, makes us the ideal partner for local authorities looking to make a paradigm shift in neighbourhood electrification.

“This project shows how councils across the country can scale up their public charging quickly and get the best possible coverage with the extra funds the Government has recently committed to supporting public charging in residential areas.”

530 char.gy devices rolled out in Merton 

All maintenance costs will be covered by char.gy, while the charge point operator will also provide the local authority with a revenue stream from charging services that can be used for other sustainable projects.

The capital costs of the installation are funded through a combination of private investment from char.gy and Government grant funding through the On-street Residential Charging Scheme.

“At Merton Council, we are committed to making it easy and accessible for people across the borough to access EV charging near their homes and where they work,” said Councillor Stephen Alambritis, Merton Council’s Cabinet Member for Transport.

“This installation is a significant step towards providing the on-street access to EV charging points needed in Merton. 

“We are especially pleased that by using the lamppost chargers, we have been able to make EV charging more accessible for residents with a disability.

“Our ambition is to make Merton one of the best places in London to rent, own, or share an electric vehicle – this is crucial to our efforts to reduce emissions in the borough and clean up the air we all breathe.”