Before determining whether a site might be suitable for public electric vehicle charging infrastructure it is important to understand how you expect the charging station to be used. 

Three purpose categories are identified below:

Category Description Potential sites/locations
Demonstration projects As electric vehicles continue to emerge, public and private stakeholders are demonstrating their commitment by installing sites to increase the profile of electric vehicles. These sites are usually in very public areas and may be used to demonstrate emerging technology in the future.
  • Public facilities
  • High visibility areas

Read the Sustainability Trust's article: Charge your EV on us - and the sun(external link)

Electrified parking Many battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) have a limited range so everyday charging may need to be a mixture of home charging and away-from-home charging. Electrified parking is a service provided by car park owners. It is designed to support all-day or part-day parking, so has low daily turnover but may offer multiple installations within a single location. As there is a greater expectation that the driver will leave the vehicle for a longer time, slow charging could be a suitable, cost-effective option for electrified parking. 
  • On-street parking
  • Off-street parking
  • Parking buildings
  • Park-and-ride car parks
  • Retail car parks
En-route This type of charging is designed for people who want to stop for a short period of time; this includes roaming or intercity drivers. It is typically located in high-visibility, high-demand, high-turnover areas with 24-hour access. These types of charging stations will likely be fast charge and therefore more expensive to install than slow charge. Investors may look to provide en-route charging as part of a wider service.
  • Service stations
  • Rural highways
  • Urban main streets