Electric car drivers to benefit from up to 60,000 new EV chargers with ‘critical’ street cabinet trial

January 08, 2024

Tens of thousands of electric vehicle chargers could be installed in the coming years with new schemes making use of common street features.

BT Group has launched a pilot to “power up” its electric vehicle charging strategy with an EV charger built from a street cabinet traditionally used to store broadband and phone cabling.

The pilot scheme aims to extend the usefulness of near-end-of-life green street cabinets by transforming them into EV chargers.

It is hoped that the new technology could add thousands of new chargers by making use of up to 60,000 street cabinets.

This could help thousands of drivers across the UK have access to charging capabilities even if they do not have dedicated on-street parking.

There are currently just under 54,000 charging points across the UK, although fewer than 1,000 new devices were added between November and December.

The Government has set a target for 300,000 chargers across the UK by the end of the decade to meet the demand for the growing number of electric vehicles.

Data from BT Group found that 38 per cent of Britons said they would have an electric car already if they had more confidence in the EV charging network.

There are plans for Etc., the startup and digital incubation arm of BT, to begin installing the first chargers in East Lothian, Scotland.

It is hoped that further pilots will be rolled out across the UK over the coming months.