Barnet Council has taken a major step forward in enabling the switch to electric vehicles with the rollout of up to 1,000 new on-street charge points. Installations of the first 500 have begun and will be ready in next three months, the remaining 500 will be installed within three years and will bring the total number of EV charge points in Barnet to 2,500.
Barnet leads all London boroughs in recorded public charging energy demand, with 143 MWh, a clear sign of strong existing usage and growing EV adoption in the area. The addition of 1,000 new charge points will help meet this growing need and cement Barnet's position as a leader in London’s EV transition.
Delivered in partnership with char.gy, one of the UK’s leading EV charging operators, the on-street charging installations will target streets and neighbourhoods where demand is rising, particularly for residents who park on-street and don’t have access to home chargers.
Cllr Alan Schneiderman, Cabinet Member for Environment and Climate Change, said:
“Lots more electric vehicle charge points is great news for Barnet residents. It's another step in the right direction as we move towards becoming a Net Zero borough by 2042.
“We know that sustainable, zero emissions vehicles will play a key role in achieving our goals as we work with residents and partners to make Barnet a cleaner, greener borough for all.”
Installations are quick - typically completed in under two hours - and residents will be able to use char.gy’s low-rate Night Saver Tariff to benefit from lower off-peak electricity rates. The charge points will be integrated into existing lampposts to reduce disruption and avoid the need for pavement clutter. Each unit charges at up to 5kW and will be powered through a Renewable Energy Guarantees of Origin tariff.
char.gy currently operates nearly 4,000 public charge points across the UK and specialises in serving areas with limited access to off-street parking. The Barnet deployment represents one of the company’s most ambitious boroughwide partnerships to date.
char.gy charge points can be easily found within the Zapmap app by using the network filter - users can also pay for their charging sessions in the app, where you can also save you favourite charge points and conveniently access VAT receipts at any time.
John Lewis, CEO at char.gy, said:
“Barnet is showing real leadership with this rollout - making it easier for people to make the switch to electric by ensuring charging is available right outside their homes.
“We’re excited to be delivering one of our largest borough-wide installations yet and to bring our experience to the streets of Barnet. By working closely with councils like this, we’re making EV charging simple, fair, and accessible to all.”
The council secured almost £800,000 of grant funding through Office for Zero Emissions Vehicles’ On Street Residential Chargepoint Scheme (ORCS) to cover 60% of the cost. The remainder is covered by the char.gy, so these improvements come at no cost to the council.
