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Neath Port Talbot Council is progressing a pilot scheme to help residents without driveways or off-street parking charge their electric vehicles at home.

The trial will use an innovative cross-footway gully system, creating a safe channel in the pavement for a cable to run from a home charger to a car parked on the street, reducing trip hazards for pedestrians.

Ten households have been carefully selected to take part, representing a mix of urban and rural locations, as well as different street layouts and pavement types. This will help us understand how well the solution works in a range of real-life settings.

Access to convenient charging is one of the biggest barriers to switching to electric vehicles in terraced-housing areas. This trial will help us explore practical solutions for our communities. Charging at home overnight can also be significantly cheaper, at around 8p/kWh, compared to 80p/kWh for fast or rapid chargers.

The trial is fully funded through a grant provided by the Swansea Bay City Deal. Funding will cover the supply and installation of an EV charging unit at each participating property, together with the associated works required to supply and install the cross-footway gully infrastructure.

Councillor Jeremy Hurley, Neath Port Talbot Council's Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Economic Growth, said: "As more people make the switch to electric vehicles, it's important that we look at practical solutions which make charging accessible for everyone, regardless of whether they have a driveway or off-street parking.

"This pilot will allow us to test an innovative approach that could help residents charge their vehicles conveniently from home while ensuring our pavements remain safe and accessible for pedestrians.

"The trial will provide valuable insight into how this technology works in a range of settings across Neath Port Talbot and help us understand whether it could play a wider role in supporting our decarbonisation ambitions and the transition to cleaner transport in the future.”

The outcomes of this trial will be used to inform future policy, assess operational feasibility, and determine whether the solution could be implemented more widely across the highway network to support the transition to low-emission transport as part of the delivery of the Council’s DARE Strategy and recently launched Decarbonisation Delivery Plan.

The plan identifies practical actions the council can take to make a difference locally and reduce its environmental impact while continuing to deliver vital services for local people. These include improving the energy efficiency of council buildings, increasing the use of renewable energy, moving more council vehicles away from diesel and petrol, supporting more sustainable purchasing of services, and making better use of land to support nature and the local environment.

If successful, the scheme could pave the way for residents across Neath Port Talbot to apply for an on-street EV charging point installed outside their homes and take advantage of UK Government grants of up to £500 towards the installation of eligible charge points.

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Contact: media@npt.gov.uk