Dorothy’s cross-pavement charging solution

Dorothy and her husband live in a coastal town to the east of Edinburgh. With on-street parking outside their home, they wanted to switch to an electric car but needed a practical and safe way to charge it at home.

They used the cross-pavement charging grant to install a cable gully – an enclosed channel in the pavement to safely fit the charging cable. This has enabled them to charge their car overnight, making the move to electric driving easier and more affordable.

Dorothy, a retired primary headteacher, and her husband, a retired Church of Scotland minister, wanted to switch to an electric car for environmental reasons. However, like many people who rely on on-street parking, charging at home presented a challenge.

“We live in a street with on-street parking only and were looking for a solution so that we could change to an electric car.”

The couple wanted to avoid running charging cables across the pavement, even with protective matting in place, due to safety concerns.

Alongside supporting their move to an electric vehicle, home charging would also offer greater convenience and lower charging costs compared to public chargers.

Dorothy describes the installation itself as straightforward and professionally managed.

“The actual installation of the cross-pavement gully was very efficient. The two installers explained everything and left a clean, neat job.”

There were some coordination challenges between different organisations involved in the process. However, these issues were resolved in time for the work to go ahead.

Dorothy hopes that the process will continue to improve as more cross-pavement solutions are installed across Scotland.

Since the installation, charging their electric car has become much simpler and easier to plan.

“We can plan our charging times much more easily knowing the car is outside our house and can be charged overnight.”

Having the ability to charge at home has removed many of the frustrations they previously anticipated with relying on public chargers.

“The stress of finding spaces on public chargers, or ones which work, has been removed.”

Dorothy has also noticed the financial benefits of home charging.

“It is significantly less expensive to charge at home.”

The cross-pavement solution has brought additional everyday benefits.

“Having the car charging outside our property means easier access and more flexibility.”

Before the installation, Dorothy was concerned about how the charging equipment might look outside their home. However, those concerns quickly disappeared.

“The appearance of the charger worried me before it was installed but it is unobtrusive and in no way detracts from our property.”

Overall, the convenience and ease of use have made a significant difference.

Dorothy believes cross-pavement charging solutions could help many people who see on-street parking as a barrier to owning an electric vehicle.

“This is a way of solving what might be seen as a barrier to having a charger if you have on-street parking and I would certainly recommend it.”