The European Parliament has passed two new laws to make life easier for owners of electric vehicles.
While sales of electric cars occupy an increasingly significant place in Europe and while the objectives of greenhouse gas reductions still seem utopian, the European Union is legislating. Thus, the uncertainty of long journeys in an electric car should soon be no more than an old memory there.
One station every 60 kilometers by 2026
To break down one of the barriers that could hold back some users who plan to buy an electric car, the European Parliament began by adopting a law requiring the installation of an electric vehicle charging station every 60 kilometres. This will ensure that even vehicles with the least autonomy can venture there serenely.
However, this law does not apply to all mainland roads and highways. Only the European axes are concerned, which nevertheless cover tens of thousands of kilometers and cross all the countries of the Union. Along these main axes, it will therefore be necessary to install as many charging stations as necessary before 2026, and these must deliver a power of at least 400 kW initially, power increased to a minimum of 600 kW by 2028.
An equivalent rule for heavy goods vehicles will also be put in place. Stations will have to be installed there at least every 120 kilometers and deliver a power of at least 1.4 MW, or up to 2.8 MW, depending on the route.
Simplify payment
The other law passed yesterday by the European Parliament concerns the simplicity of payment and the transparency of prices. Indeed, these are not necessarily displayed for the moment, and some charging stations only accept payment from an application. Without prohibiting this method, it will now be mandatory to accept payments by traditional methods, such as credit card and contactless payment. As for the prices, they must therefore be clearly consultable and upstream of the station.
In other words, the operation of charging stations for electric vehicles will be aligned with that of good old gasoline service stations. At the same time, Europe is working to develop an interactive map to view the status of availability, waiting times, or prices of these charging stations, which will be available from anywhere.
Source : Electrek
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