At last the urban charging bay is complete. However, fossil fuelled cars blocking charging bays are a big problem to an EV owner with a low battery. There is a now little plate by the charging space I use saying “Electric vehicle recharging point only” this little piece of metal means ICE cars will get a ticket if they block the space. Portsmouth Council have confirmed this in an email so I shall report ICEing using the myPortsmouth app.
I feel a bit bad reporting ICE cars, however, on reflection, if I went with a number of other drivers and parked by all the pumps at a petrol station leaving our cars there for a few days the consequences would probably be worse than a parking ticket. I guess our cars would be towed away and the police might be talking to us.
The consequences for an electric instructor not being able to charge is lost money, damaged reputation and the possibility a pupil might not be able to do a test.
The final stage of Portsmouth’s urban charging scheme being effective is enforcement. It will get the message out there that bays are for charging. Especially as there seems to be a bit of hostility out there towards EVs and angry objectors will block the bays if they can. As you would guess I don’t understand the anger towards electric vehicles. They’re not badly affecting other people’s lives in any way and are benefitting them with zero emissions from a vehicle in their city.
I’m looking forward to being able to plug in when work is finished without having to go to the rapid charger for 40 minutes. Point made.
