Watchdog comment on Government steps to make EV charging accessible for disabled drivers

14 November 2025

Transport Focus respond to a new amendment made to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill which will help ensure that disabled people are not left behind by the transition to EVs. The amendment gives the Government powers to mandate public charging standards by law if the accessibility of public chargers does not improve. 

Commenting on the amendment, Transport Focus Director, Louise Collins, said:

“This is an important step forward for disabled drivers who often face considerable challenges in accessing public EV chargepoints. Knowing the government has the power to mandate accessibility standards should encourage the industry to move faster and gives confidence that action will be taken if progress is too slow.

“We need to see a clear and ambitious timescale for the industry to work to including a minimum number of accessible chargepoints. Failing to set out a clear plan now risks leaving disabled drivers behind today and a major, expensive retrofit job in the future.”

Background

Transport Focus’s report Plugging the gap – the need to improve the EV charging experience for disabled drivers report sets out what needs to change to address the situation and to improve the provision and experience for EV users.

Hear from disabled EV users on their experiences with charging points and the feeling of uncertainty that these inaccessible designs can cause: