The next day we started making our way to Dover again, with a planned stop somewhere along the way. We had a full two days to drive from Milton Keynes to Dover, so we had plenty of time to do some extra things like going for a walk in the lovely Ampthill Park.
Tesla Supercharger at South Mimms (Image: Surya)
At the South Mimms charger, we also encountered 2 Tesla superchargers under wraps. At least, I can’t think what else it could have been, but it didn’t say anything on them. A few minutes later we passed a Tesla Model S on the M25. In the UK you certainly see more Leafs than in Belgium, but we certainly have way more Model S’s.
Lee Valley Campsite (Image: Surya)
We ended our day by finding a camp site in the Lee valley. They had Mennekes (the RV type, not the EV type) to Shuko (regular household plug in mainland Europe) adapter cables for sale for £15 so we got one as we knew we would use it in the future. This camp site also had RV outlets available. But they were only 10A. I decided to give it a shot anyway. The car started charging right away, but a couple of minutes later I noticed it wasn’t charging anymore. I guess the fuse didn’t hold up. The two power outlets where dead, that was for sure.
Motorcycle journalists and competition winners were given the opportunity to test drive the world’s fastest electric production bike at Dunsfold Park, the Top Gear test track. At the same time Paul Rees professional racing car driver, son of the Formula 2 star Alan Rees led the Twizy agility racing competition and took passengers for fast laps around the track in the CATUK ZOE.
Families were able to see how we will ‘top-up charge’ in the future, plugging in electric cars in the same way as we currently plug in our phones whenever we stop. The CATUK ZOE was charged every time the team stopped for an event; topping up their car while playing a round of golf, and cooking a meal for four with a Michelin starred chef at Sainsbury’s. POD Point encouraged people to customise their own local charging by requesting charge points to be installed at places they stop regularly – the gym, the supermarket, their workplace; creating their own POD Chains.
Local primary schools also participated in the CATUK campaign with classes visiting Eden Project and Chirk Castle to learn more about environmental impact of fossil fuels, and having the opportunity to test drive electric scooters, electric Segways and the CATUK ZOE.
POD Point even helped businesses through the campaign; offering them a low cost option for their customers and employees to charge electric cars. POD Point launched the first lease option in Europe for electric car charging, bringing the cost down from over £1000 installed to less than £50 per month.
Charging around the UK successfully demonstrated not just how much charging infrastructure is available in the UK, but also how people can take control of the infrastructure in their local area, and how their local businesses can help support them through Leasing a POD Point.
Founder & CEO of POD Point, Erik Fairbairn commented:
“CATUK has been a fantastic example of POD Point actively moving the UK forward in adoption of the electric vehicle. As we move forward, the EV buyers are no longer the early adopters, but early majority, and it is work like we have done with our partners on CATUK which show the early majority that the UK is ready for them to go EV.”
