Connected Kerb expands to South London
Connected Kerb is working with the London borough of Lambeth in the South of the British capital. The partners want to install 22 EV chargers across eleven council estates for drivers who do not have access to off-street parking.
Both Lambeth Council and Connected Kerb emphasise the approach to bring EV charging to underserved or low-income communities. All 22 chargers will provide a 7kW charging rate, and their installation forms a part of the Council’s target to install more than 200 charging points by 2022.
“People often think electric vehicles are the preserve of a fortunate few with detached houses and driveways, but this couldn’t be further from the truth,” said Chris Pateman-Jones, CEO of Connected Kerb. “With running costs much lower than petrol and diesel cars, all communities, regardless of where they live, their social background, or whether they have a driveway or not, have lots to gain.”
“Unfortunately, some communities are being failed by a classic chicken and egg scenario. Without high EV adoption, charge point operators won’t build public charging, and without reliable charging, why would anyone go electric?”
Lambeth, which is among the most polluted areas in London, wants to become a carbon-neutral borough by 2030 and was the first local authority in London to declare a climate emergency. The Council also operates on a target of electrifying 30 per cent of its landscapes division fleet as part of a five-year Air Quality Action Plan. As part of this, Lambeth reportedly took delivery of six Renault Kangoo E-Tech vans just in June to green its own operations.
Connected Kerb also revealed plans to install chargers in remote areas of Kent earlier this year and told Autocar it was “working with councils across the country to roll out charging in similar projects.” In earlier communications, the company pointed out that the government’s On-Street Residential Charge Point Scheme, available to all local authorities in the UK, can finance up to 75% of the costs. The ORCS had been extended again in February as reported.
About Connected Kerb
Connected Kerb came onto the infrastructure scene in 2019, focussing on compact on-street chargers specific to the UK market. The chargers can be mounted on curbs, traffic sign poles or boundary bollards at the roadside with the first edition being about 30 centimetres high and made of recycled material.
The latest charging infrastructure is located below ground and installed once, with passive chargers that can be easily ‘switched on’ by adding the above-ground charge point to match consumer demand, according to the company.
The charge poles can also offer WiFi access and collect traffic or air quality data for municipal administration. Connected Kerb further specifies a lifespan of 20+ years and grid infrastructure installed just once with the capacity to upscale at low cost and in line with demand, and integrated smart technologies such as 5G, CCTV or road sensors.
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