Electric car owners without driveways in England will no longer need planning permission to install a cross-pavement charging gully from Wednesday, a change ministers say could make home charging far cheaper for millions of households. But the reform is proving to be a postcode lottery, with more than 20 councils still refusing to allow the devices at all.

A gully is a narrow channel set flush into the pavement that lets an EV charging cable run from a house to a car parked on the street without creating a trip hazard. Drivers are already barred from simply trailing cables across footpaths, so until now anyone wanting to charge at home first had to seek council planning permission before fitting a gully — a process that campaigners say has taken as long as 15 months in some areas and typically cost between £300 and £500. Scrapping that requirement should remove much of that expense, though homes in conservation areas will still need approval.

Caroline Pidgeon, the Liberal Democrat peer who campaigned for the rule change, points out that one in three households in England have no driveway, and says simpler rules should make switching to electric cars easier.

Yet take-up will depend heavily on where people live. Ealing council, for instance, has ruled out gullies on safety grounds, leaving residents such as Alison Williams, who bought an electric Volkswagen ID.3 two years ago, reliant on costlier public chargers. Other holdouts include Kent, Leicestershire, Worcestershire, Waltham Forest and Hackney, often citing concerns about pavement safety, liability and maintenance. Fulham driver Nick Theobald says he cannot yet get one installed, despite the practice being “completely permitted” just across the river in Richmond.

Costs also vary sharply between councils that do allow them. Kerbo Charge, an installation firm, says prices without the £25m government grant pot average about £1,200, but range from £499 in Surrey to £250 in South Gloucestershire. Some authorities, including Redbridge and Enfield, also charge annual licence fees of up to £185.

The savings can still be substantial. Gregg Francis in Carmarthenshire, who had a gully fitted for free under a council scheme, says he can fully charge his Vauxhall Vivaro Life for £6, compared with £30 to £63 at a public charger. Industry body ChargeUK says off-peak home charging averages 8p per kWh against 54p publicly. EVA England's Vicky Edmonds says driveway owners save roughly £1,400 a year over petrol or diesel cars — a saving many without off-street parking are still missing out on.

Source: The Guardian

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