Senedd Cymru | Welsh Parliament
Pwyllgor Newid Hinsawdd, yr Amgylchedd a Seilwaith | Climate Change, Environment and Infrastructure Committee
Gwefru cerbydau trydan | Electric vehicle charging
Ymateb gan Sefydliad Cadwraeth Adeiladau Hanesyddol | Evidence from Institute of Historic Building Conservation
There is a need for an adequate support infrastructure to achieve zero emissions by 2050. However care should be taken in the historic built environment to ensure that the infrastructure changes have due regard to context and quality. They should be located sensitively, be well designed and of good quality and of the highest level in terms of any intervention which might impact on the Historic Built environment. This requires thought to be given to design early on in the process especially if contracts are awarded to supply charging points in bulk. Given the uniform approach to charging units, the paraphernalia that accompany such infrastructure (electrical units and stations nearby that serve the units) also need due regard, along with the inevitable protections around units (railings, bumpers, fenders) associated with their protection. It is not just the units themselves but the combination of these and their associated infrastructure that pose a potential threat to important historic character and valued street scenes. It is vital that this is done at the commissioning stage to avoid being locked in to an inappropriate design post-tendering stage where costs of available units and their protections are already costed and set.
A series of principles should also be developed to ensure charging points are provided with as little impact on the historic environment as possible. For example charging points should not be attached to the principal fronts buildings and should be sited away from important architectural features. Detached and semi-detached should have them positioned on the side elevations where possible.