One in five people in the UK live with a disability and it’s estimated there will be 2.7 million disabled drivers or passengers in the UK by 2035. As we transition to electric vehicles (EVs), 1.35 million disabled drivers are expected to be partially or fully reliant on the public electric vehicle charging infrastructure because they often cannot charge at home.
As the EV charging infrastructure is rolled out at pace to meet the growing number of EVs on the road, Designability had to act to ensure no one is left behind in this transition and help the industry avoid costly retrofit.
Designability is a national charity that enables disabled people to live with greater independence. The company uses human-centred design to create products and solutions with and for disabled people to improve and enrich their lives, giving them greater choice every day.
Through its partnership with Motability, the charity, Designability have conducted extensive research and engagement with disabled drivers and passengers and those close to them, to understand the challenges they face and shape the solutions needed.
The result is our free evidence-based Design Guidance for accessible public EV charging. Their research also informed the new national BSI standard PAS 1899:2022 Electric vehicles – Accessible charging – Specification. This has been co-sponsored by Motability, the charity, and UK Government’s Office for Zero Emissions Vehicles (OZEV).
Catharine Brown, Designability CEO, said: “The outcomes of our research and user testing at every stage of the process have ensured the published Design Guidance does deliver what good inclusive design looks like, to ensure accessibility for everyone and future proof the EV public charging infrastructure.”
The clear and illustrative Design Guidance is presented online and available to download so that organisations designing, manufacturing, installing and procuring public EV charging points, can ensure their solutions are accessible to disabled people and everyone.
Designability wants to ensure everyone in the EV industry is aware of the free resource. To find out more see here.
