ESB eCars - Thread 2

It's the infinite game of buck passing

The private sector says it's the councils problem

The council says it's the government problem

The government says they've done everything and it's up to the private sector

Meanwhile, nobody with an apartment has a charger

I owned an apartment in meath and it had an OMC, I had no issue getting a charger installed in my assigned spot. From posts (and photos) here I know I'm not the only boardsie to do so either

I think that's part of it, another aspect just seems to depend on the management company

I know one poster here who just described what they were going to do, the groundworks needed and gave assurances everything would be put back the way it was and they got the green light

Yet another aspect might just be the ease of installation. If you have a duplex or a terrace house and an assigned space just outside then it's pretty simple

An underground car park would require access to the meter room (which is often also underground) and ducting to be run to an assigned space

One last thing I can think of is the "what about me" factor. If a few residents start installing their own chargers then other residents will follow suit and you could potentially have a mess of different installations. This would probably cause complaints from other residents

A longer term solution would be to install the ducting for all spaces and charge each apartment a one time fee to install a charger

However this requires planning and capital investment. Since most OMCs seem to struggle to change the communal light bulbs, I don't think they're up to the challenge

Ultimately there is need for legislation which supports apartment residents getting chargers installed when requested.
I believe these should be charged at cost + 5c/kwh. And tapped off a communal supply and accessed bia. Swipe or app

put in serveral chargers which can be accessed with 8’ cables from many spots. Places where there a back to back chargers means 1 charger can serve 4 spots easily

there’s grants of Upto 70-80% of costs. Running a Cable along a wall in an underground car park would be fairly low costs.

Either that or charge a nominal monthly fee of €5-€10 to access charging at your home rate from private communal pillars. The nominal fee to support the charger in place of them owning their own charger.

There's lots of things the govt could do if they were bothered

Normally I'd agree, but as Red Silurian says above, this is a more nuanced issue than state control equals bad can cover.

Theory, practice, legislation, action plans, great intentions, practical solutions etc……all hinge on the one huge disappointing variable in the chain……people.

And as a people, we are really bad at adhering to 'rules' and resisting the urge to 'ring a solicitor'. The whole area is fraught with opportunities to abuse any system attempted by any organisation - would you blame an OMC or a local authority for being a bit nervous and/or not inclined to progress projects forward?

Without being a politician and knowing the exact ins and outs of legislation wording I'd say something along the lines of the following would suffice

Apartment complexes that don't or can't facilitate the installation of EV chargers connected directly to the residents own consumer unit or meter must provide for an on-site or nearby cost effective offsite charging solution.

As the constitution allows for limiting private property rights in the interests of the common good this shouldn't run into any difficulties

Such as?

I'm fairly sure that it would be VERY UNUSUAL if not unique in legislative terms to FORCE private organisations (the management companies of the block) to spend on retrospective installation of facilities like this, with both one-off and recurring budget impacts for that private organisation. In general, building regulations are not retrospective, and set out mandatory standards for newly built facilities. What happens when the management company is currently in the toilet financially due to dealing with shoddy fire protection in the initial build? What happens when the management is broke after doing a major refit of their 30 year old lifts? Is it really sensible to force elderly owners or transient renters who don't have and won't have a car to pay a share of these facilities? What's the sanction for management companies who don't comply?
It's very difficult to see how workable legislation could come through this.

Incidentally, for anyone concerned about the governments actions or lack thereof regarding public charging and its availability and pricing I'd suggest contacting your local councillors and TDs

While I doubt any of us are so eloquent that we can persuade a politician individually, if enough people are loudly calling for a solution then it's in their interest to listen. This is how democracy works after all

Here's a little example letter you can send if you want, I'll be firing it out to my local representatives.

Deputy/Councillor X,

I am writing to you as a resident of <where you live> who is concerned about the continued lack of charging points for electric vehicle owner without their own driveway

Currently, no planning authority in Ireland will allow installation of a private charger to service on street parking. Residents of apartment buildings are subject to the rules of their management companies which will often deny the installation of a charger

As such, EV owners without access to a private charger are forced to rely on public or communal charging. The cost of such charging is often prohibitively expensive and provides almost no benefit over fossil fuels

This is turn will significantly hamper the transition to electric vehicles and continue to impact the environment in Ireland

I believe there are several steps that government and local councils could take to remedy this issue

First would be to update planning guidelines to allow owners to install private charger for an on-street parking space. Such guidelines should prevent installations from being blocked unless they present a danger to others

Second, a programme for installing low power chargers to public parking spaces for residents. Such a programme could be a 2 stage process where the council performs the necessary groundwork for a street and then residents can pay a one time fee to have a charger installed

Finally, it is clear that without a significant cost benefit then drivers will not switch to EVs. Therefore there should be a programme to allow drivers to access public charging in their area at a rate similar to domestic electricity prices. Galway City Council has already demonstrated this is possible and it's possible their model can be implemented elsewhere

Thank you for taking the time to consider my concerns and I look forward to your reply

Regards,

Joe Pleb

Well, best get in touch with your local representatives in that case, you can copy the letter I posted above and modify to your hearts content 😉

"There is nothing strange at all about a government introducing legislation to make changes to our lives."

Can you point to any other legislation that obliged private businesses to spend money on retrofitting facilities like this?

I'm guessing you didn't read the suggestion about having the council perform groundworks on a street and then residents can pay to install a charger?

Or the suggestion about the discounted price for residents like in Galway?

The problem isn't about who does the work. The problem is about allocating public space and facilities for private individuals.