The county council failed to install any on-street electric vehicle chargers in the last year, a freedom of information request submitted by the Oxford Mail has revealed.

Responding to this finding, Green party city councillor Emily Kerr warned the opportunity to help motorists “make the transition” to electric vehicles would be hampered if owning an electric car was only feasible for those with driveways.

But Oxfordshire County Council has stated it will be looking to install on-street EV charging points as part of a "holistic solution" with support from central government in the coming year. 

The Oxford Mail’s freedom of information request revealed that the county council had not installed any on street electric vehicle chargers between January 2022 and June 2023.

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The council defended the figure by revealing that its Electric Vehicle (EV) Infrastructure Strategy had a preference for EV charging hubs in off-street locations such as public car parks.

These were deemed by the authority to be “easier to manager, cheaper to install and cause less hassle to residents”.

Oxford Mail: Green Party and city councillor Emily KerrGreen Party and city councillor Emily Kerr

Ms Kerr said: “We know we need lots of EV solutions, but we absolutely need on-street charging for people to be able to top up in their local areas.

“There is a substantial number of people in Oxford who do not have off street parking, so we have got to have council owned facilities in people’s local neighbourhoods.”

Dr Pete Sudbury, cabinet member for climate change delivery, defended the council’s record and said the county was a “leader in the adoption and the provision of electric charging”.

Oxford Mail: Pete SudburyPete Sudbury (Image: Newsquest)

Dr Sudbury pointed to the council’s installation of 238 EV chargers across 19 charging hubs in district council owned car parks as evidence that work was being done to help more people make the transition.

Dr Sudbury said: “Park and charge was a big national bid, and it took up any capacity in funding which we had.”

Redbridge Park and Ride offers ultra-rapid charging for 42 vehicles at once and is the most powerful electric charging hub in Europe.

Oxford Mail: Redbridge Park and RideRedbridge Park and Ride

However, Dr Sudbury did admit that more needed to be done to help people in rural areas.

He said: “In a semi-rural county, it is difficult to avoid car use.

“Public transport can’t realistically serve the variety of start and finish points for journeys and bike journeys can be longer and roads often feel unsafe for cyclists.

“We need to accelerate the decarbonisation of transport by giving everyone the option somewhere to charge their car as close to home as possible.”

The council is trialling a project called OxGul-E and this is a low-tech solution to charging which allows a cable from a wall mounted home charger to safely cross to the kerbside through a cable channel recessed into the pavement.

A county council spokesman said: “The county council and our other city and district council partners are also keen that pavements are left clear and prioritised for active travel modes such as walking and wheeling wherever possible.

“However, the county council recognises that not all public EV charging demand can be met by provision of car park based hubs, and that in some locations on-street EV charging will be the only viable solution."