Pavement Suitability for On Street Charge Points

Pavement Suitability for On Street Charge Points

This dataset provides an indication of pavements that are likely to be suitable for a traditional on street EV charge point, based on an analysis of several factors, predominantly pavement widths. Local planning restrictions and the presence of overground or underground obstructions are not considered.

This dataset approximates the width of parcels classified as different types of ‘roadside’ artefacts in the Ordnance Survey Master Map. Roadside structures that are not pavements (e.g. natural borders) are filtered out, so that only man-made curbsides and pavements are considered. The remaining roadside surfaces are split into sections according to their estimated width based on a geospatial query that groups pavement segments into different bandings (e.g. 1-2m, 2-3m, etc.).

Pavements approximated to be <1.9 meters wide are rated likely unsuitable for an on street chargepoint and pavements >2.1 meters wide are rated likely suitable. Pavements estimated to be between 1.9 and 2.1 in width are assessed as ‘Maybe’ suitable.

According to the UK Government's EV Infrastructure Guide for Local Authorities (published October 2023), the minimum pavement width required before an on-street EV charger can be installed is 1.5 metres of clear, unobstructed pavement space after installation. This dataset assessment adds a buffer around this regulation and therefore marks any pavement section estimated to be 1.9 meters or less as likely unsuitable and any pavement section estimated to be 2.0 meters or wider as likely suitable.

Many authorities seek to avoid placing public EV chargers directly in front of resident homes to avoid a sense of ownership over ‘their’ charger. Pavement sections directly in front of homes are therefore also unsuitable in this dataset. Users can filter these areas back in using Map > Filters and filtering based on the field ‘Reason Unsuitable’.