On 9-10 November, ERTICO took part in the European Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Conference organised by ERTICO Partner SAE International. John Paddington, Senior Manager at ERTICO, participated in a session on “Considerations of Charging Infrastructure for E-micromobility”. The session covered an often overlooked element of electric vehicle charging – what are the requirements for micromobility?
John Paddington gave an overview of the different types of micromobility, drawing on experience from the SOLUTIONSplus project, which is testing a wide range of electrified vehicles around the world. He reminded the importance of considering user needs, particularly to avoid street clutter. He also showed some examples of how ERTICO city partners in Birmingham, UK, and Hamburg, Germany, are already considering infrastructure for micromobility through their work and mobility hubs. Work on the EU-funded SOLUTIONSplus has shown that battery swapping being as important as charging facilities for small micromobility vehicles.
The first speaker in the session, Fabian Küster of the European Cyclists Foundation (ECF), presented an overview of the rapid growth of e-Bikes, their charging requirements and whether additional infrastructure is required, for instance in rural locations to encourage tourism, or secure charging or storage locations for batteries in buildings. He also presented a discussion around ECF’s recommendations to the European Commission to encourage e-Bike uptake.
Lisa Spellman, founding Director of the VRU Safety Consortium and session organiser, commented: “This was a terrific session. Both John and Fabian did an excellent job outlining key issues in micromobility charging as well as general infrastructure considerations. Even as the micromobility sector continues its rapid growth worldwide, there are still far too many that start their thinking on the movement of people and goods with a 4-wheeled personal vehicle or large commercial truck in mind. While there certainly is an important place in the overall transportation sector for these modes, the tremendous opportunity and value for micromobility is not as well known or accepted as it should be. But that is changing and sessions such as ours and the great work underway by ECF, ERTICO and many other organisations are leading important knowledge generation and change.”
Missed the session? This session as well as others from the conference are available online here.
The SOLUTIONSplus project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 875041.
