Are we being forced to go electric?

[youngoldbloke]

It was what you described IMHO.

Correct.

Yes, but mostly looking at fast chargers. If you look at Brighton for example they have around 200 lamp post chargers many of which are in residents only parking. The cost to use those was initially 26p per kwh, and has recently been increased to 39p per Kwh. That's on a par with a domestic electricity tariff. Yes, it's not as cheap as having your own charger because you can't go for the EV only option or use solar panels, but £32 for a full tank is still significantly cheaper than diesel and petrol.

Surely many thousands more lamp post chargers will be required when the majority of cars in Brighton are EVs, or will EV owners without access to home charging be expected to rely on the goodwill of others to shuffle their vehicles around Brighton's residential streets to share the limited chargers provided? It many places it is difficult enough finding a parking space anywhere near one's home never mind about a specific lamp post.

 

[Alex321]

Surely many thousands more lamp post chargers will be required when the majority of cars in Brighton are EVs, or will EV owners without access to home charging be expected to rely on the goodwill of others to shuffle their vehicles around Brighton's residential streets to share the limited chargers provided? It many places it is difficult enough finding a parking space anywhere near one's home never mind about a specific lamp post.

There will certainly have to be many more lamppost (or other similar) chargers, not just in Brighton, but anywhere in the country where there are residential areas without off-street parking for most residents.

How quickly that can happen, who knows?

 

[Joey Shabadoo]

I wonder if we're moving back to individual transport being a luxury - as it was in the time of horses. Good for the planet but a readjustment needed away from the idea of car ownership being a right.

 

[KnittyNorah]

Yes, but mostly looking at fast chargers. If you look at Brighton for example they have around 200 lamp post chargers many of which are in residents only parking. The cost to use those was initially 26p per kwh, and has recently been increased to 39p per Kwh. That's on a par with a domestic electricity tariff. Yes, it's not as cheap as having your own charger because you can't go for the EV only option or use solar panels, but £32 for a full tank is still significantly cheaper than diesel and petrol.

So the person without their own charging facilities will still be charged more than if they had the convenience of their own charger - and for the privilege of needing to wander around the streets checking if any chargers have become vacant yet, so as to be able to fuel up and drive to work in the morning? I mean, 200 isn't very many for a city of 277,200 (2021 census), is it? Especially when not all the lamp-post chargers are even accessible to you ...

 

[vickster]

There will certainly have to be many more lamppost (or other similar) chargers, not just in Brighton, but anywhere in the country where there are residential areas without off-street parking for most residents.

How quickly that can happen, who knows?

Not sure where the 2/3 of properties have off street parking comes from, certainly not in urban/suburban areas with terraces and flats where large swathes of the population reside.
I have a drive being end of terrace but the other half a dozen houses don’t, and there aren’t enough lampposts for even some of the cars to charge. Ultimately we need far fewer private cars not more on street charging points

 

[lazybloke]

https://www.parkers.co.uk/electric-cars/electric-charging-infrastructure-uk/
[/QUOTE]
I liked the bit that suggested a tenner of petrol was cheaper than a tenner of electricity.

 

[cougie uk]

Not sure where the 2/3 of properties have off street parking comes from, certainly not in urban/suburban areas with terraces and flats where large swathes of the population reside.
I have a drive being end of terrace but the other half a dozen houses don’t, and there aren’t enough lampposts for even some of the cars to charge. Ultimately we need far fewer private cars not more on street charging points

Self driving taxis will probably reduce the number of cars needed.

 

[Chislenko]

Some people don't like change.

I changed my underpants today 😊

 

[ClichéGuevara]

So the person without their own charging facilities will still be charged more than if they had the convenience of their own charger - and for the privilege of needing to wander around the streets checking if any chargers have become vacant yet, so as to be able to fuel up and drive to work in the morning? I mean, 200 isn't very many for a city of 277,200 (2021 census), is it? Especially when not all the lamp-post chargers are even accessible to you ...

...and because of the way they are wired, it's probable that most lighting columns won't be able to accommodate a charger at all, and that's before the question of metering the supply to it it is considered.

 

[Joey Shabadoo]

I changed my underpants today 😊

January already?

 

[All uphill]

Self driving taxis will probably reduce the number of cars needed.

That's a much smarter solution than everyone expecting to have their own mobile living room.

 

[vickster]

That's a much smarter solution than everyone expecting to have their own mobile living room.

Maybe in 30 years time

 

[All uphill]

Maybe in 30 years time

The technology and cars aren't too far away, IMHO, but it would be an awful wrench for the people who see their car as a status indicator, virility enhancement or personal space.

If even 20% of current car owners moved to self driving cars there could be huge benefits in terms of safety and on street parking.

 

[vickster]

The technology and cars aren't too far away, IMHO, but it would be an awful wrench for the people who see their car as a status indicator, virility enhancement or personal space.

If even 20% of current car owners moved to self driving cars there could be huge benefits in terms of safety and on street parking.

Indeed but there would need to be clear tangible benefits in terms of cost, convenience and experience for many people to ditch cars

 

[KnittyNorah]

...and because of the way they are wired, it's probable that most lighting columns won't be able to accommodate a charger at all, and that's before the question of metering the supply to it it is considered.

Interesting; I suppose - like many people - I have never really thought very much about the electricity supply to street lamps. Certainly metering is an interesting question - also the payment methods, and making the chargers themselves electrically safe for whatever thieves might want to do to them to bypass the metering.