Accessibility EV reach Heidi Turner, from Disabled Motoring UK, explains more about a project the charity is involved in to make sure disabled motorists are not left behind in the electric vehicle evolution he switch over to electric vehicles is one of the biggest challenges that disabled people will face in the coming years. It is thought that 40 per cent of people will not have the facilities or access to have a home charging point installed, so they will be reliant on public charging infrastructure. For the past year, Disabled Motoring UK (DMUK) has been involved in an Innovate UK-funded project, Shift!, with Brighton and Hove City Council and EB Charging, to investigate accessible, public electric vehicle (EV) charging for disabled motorists. Two new accessible EV charging bays have been installed at Rottingdean Marine Cliffs car park, near Brighton, which means disabled EV owners in the area have access to a fast charger that can provide a full charge in less than four hours. EB Charging has also developed an app that allows users to pre-book these EV charging bays, to alleviate the anxiety a motorist might have about arriving at the bay and it being in use. The app also includes an option for motorists to book assistance should they require support when operating the charger. When installing these new charging bays, the council also added two more standard disabled parking bays, to ensure that disabled motorists in petrol and diesel cars are not affected by any loss of parking. T Gold standard Brighton and Hove City Council is asking for feedback from users of these bays, on things such as the dimensions of the bays, the The suitability of these chargers will help DMUK to further gauge what is needed to make the EV charging network accessible accessibility of the charging units, and their experience of using the app. The suitability of these chargers will help DMUK and other Shift! project partners to further gauge what is needed to make EVs and the EV charging network accessible for disabled people. If these bays and chargers prove effective for disabled motorists, it will reinforce DMUKs plans for creating a gold standard in accessible EV charging bays. DMUK will add the specifications used for these bays to its Disabled Parking Accreditation (DPA), so disabled EV drivers can use its online system to search for accessible charging bays and feel safe in the knowledge that they will be able to continue their journey. Currently, public charging infrastructure is not accessible to many disabled motorists, and we are running out of time to put this right before the ban on the sale of new diesel and petrol vehicles in 2030, says Graham Footer, DMUK chief executive. If this trial is successful, we hope that other councils and private operators will follow Brighton and Hoves lead and install accessible charging points for their disabled residents and visitors. Alex Calnan, EB Chargings CEO, adds: Being able to book an EV chargepoint in advance removes the concern many drivers have about charger availability. This is particularly acute for disabled EV drivers, but also for people who drive EVs for work. We hope this development will encourage even more drivers to make the switch to electric in Brighton and beyond. The BPA manages the DPA on behalf of the DMUK. For more information on the DPA please visit britishparking.co.uk/Disabled-Parking-Accreditation 26 britishparking.co.uk PN May 2022 pp26-27 DMUK.indd 26 21/04/2022 11:25