12.1 Parking policy: As mentioned above there will be a need to review the overall approach to parking enforcement and fees and charges. EV charging bays will be dedicated for EV vehicles only when recharging. Any vehicle parked in an EV bay that is not recharging may be liable for a penalty charge notice. This will require a review of the Traffic Regulation Order applicable to the individual car parks.
12.2 Review of Fees and Charges: Charges may also have to be reviewed in relation to electric vehicles. Normal charges may apply for those parked in standard parking bays, but whilst re-charging in the dedicated bays there may be scope to reflect the parking charge within the charge for the electricity drawn. Charges for the electricity can be set for example to ramp up a certain time period to encourage people not to occupy the bays for longer than necessary and prevent access for others. Any vehicle that was parked in a charging bay but not charging may also be liable for a penalty notice. The right charger needs to be chosen for the right location.
12.3 Incentives: There may be a desire to incentivise the shift to electric through a review of:
- car parking fees for electric vehicles
- recharging rates for charging taxi drivers
- recharging rates for staff and/or elected members charging their own private electric vehicles in designated staff parking bays.
12.4 Consideration also needs to be given to any supporting technology to support customers accessing the charge points and checking their location and availability, as well as how this may be ‘integrated’ into existing council systems for monitoring and reporting purposes, key to understand trends and predict future demands.