The Welsh Government and EVI
The Welsh Government has a scheme to fund public chargepoints across Wales. However, it does not offer any support for local authorities to implement pavement channels.
Contents
- Funding public chargepoints
- Ultra low emission vehicle transformation fund (ULEVTF) 2023-25
- Ultra low emission vehicle transformation fund (ULEVTF) 2020-21
- Grants for home chargers
- Legislation
Funding public chargepoints
Ultra low emission vehicle transformation fund (ULEVTF) 2023-25
All authorities in Wales are receiving Welsh Government funding for public chargepoints as part of the second edition of ULEVTF. Some councils only receive funding as part of the Cardiff Capital Region.
| ULEVTF (2023-25) | |
|---|---|
| Region of scheme | Wales |
| Authority which receives funding and administers rollout | Individual councils (and Cardiff Capital Region Transport Authority) |
| Determination of funding | The Welsh Government has a complicated system of scoring to determine funding. It is available here. |
| Breakdown of spend | Although the scoring process involves assessment on a site-by-site basis, ULEVTF funds are allocated as a single payment and are not broken down on a chargepoint-by-chargepoint basis. |
| Total funding across Wales | £13.91m |
| Number of charging devices |
Ultra low emission vehicle transformation fund (ULEVTF) 2020-21
The first edition of ULEVTF was much smaller than the more recent iteration. It only featured funding in three councils beyond the Cardiff City Region.
Some projects funded by ULEVTF in 2020-21 went beyond EV chargepoints, including solar ports and an EV roadshow.
Grants for home chargers
There are no grants for home chargers specific to Wales, however the UK Government's grants apply.
Legislation
Planning
The The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995 applies in Wales, with specific amendments in 2019 that apply to EV charging. These amendments very closely match the corresponding text in England's The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015.
Except in the case of listed buildings or pavement channels, you are unlikely to need planning permission to install a home charger in Wales.
Highway Law
The Highways Act 1980 applies in Wales (as well as England).
In particular, the act discourages trailing cables over the pavement, but is vague as to the threshold for an offence:
Highways Act 1980, Section 162: Penalty for placing rope, etc. across highway.
A person who for any purpose places any rope, wire or other apparatus across a highway in such a manner as to be likely to cause danger to persons using the highway is, unless he proves that he had taken all necessary means to give adequate warning of the danger, guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding [level 3 on the standard scale].
Street works law
The New Roads and Street Works Act 1991 applies in Wales (as it does in England).
Chargepoint operators must obtain a Street Works Licence under Section 50 of the Act to install public chargepoints on the public highway.