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Electric vehicle (EV) charging cable permission

You need permission to run an electric vehicle charging cable across a public footway (path).

The granted permission only permits you to place cables perpendicular (at right angles) across the footway. It does not provide any guarantee or priority access to on-street parking directly outside your property. It also does not allow you to run a cable across a road - while we judge applications individually, any requirement to run a cable across a road will likely result in the application being refused.

Permission will only be granted following an assessment by a highways officer to determine the need and suitability at each location on a case-by-case basis. Permission will be granted for a period of two years from the date of approval.

Before you begin your application

You will need to pay a fee upfront to cover the cost of the assessment. If your application is declined because the assessment determined that the criteria is not met, you will not receive a refund.

Read the assessment criteria on this page - if you know these can/will not be met (or the answer is 'no' to the assessment questions), there is a strong possibility that permission will not be granted.

If you feel that exceptional reasons apply, you will have the opportunity to detail these on your application. They will be considered as part of your application.

Assessment criteria

  1. Is the property you are applying for your main place of residence?
  2. Do you currently have access to any off-road parking? Eg. a driveway or private residents car park.
  3. Do you have any private land (eg. front garden) that could be converted into an off-road parking space? It's important you consider all parking options before applying - we strongly encourage you to apply for a dropped kerb wherever possible.
  4. Are you able to park directly outside your property, without contravening any parking restrictions? Including:
    1. Parking wholly on the public highway in a legal manner without causing a nuisance (eg. not on the verge or footway unless explicitly permitted by existing signs)
    2. Parking without violating any contraventions (eg. double yellow lines, bus stops, zig zag markings, dropped kerbs, cycle lanes)
    3. Parking without obstructing other vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists
    4. Either outside of a resident permit zone, or with a valid permit within a resident permit zone
  5. Is the nearest public charge point facility more than a 5-minute walk (approx. 400m) from your property? (opens new window) Having an existing public charge point near to your property may result in an automatic refusal of your application. Having an existing public charge point near to your property may result in an automatic refusal of your application - this includes ongoing or proposed installations as part of our Norwich rollout. View information about the Norwich City on-street chargepoint project. Alternatively, do you or someone in your household hold a valid blue badge and regularly use the EV?
  6. Do you hold a valid and up-to-date electrical testing certificate for your property (less than 10 years old)?
  7. Has your EV been provided by your employer? If yes, has workplace charging been put in place?
  8. Are there community facilities nearby that result in a lot of people walking outside your property? Eg. doctors' surgeries, schools, shops and nurseries. Please be aware that public use will be taken into account as part of the assessment and if your application is successful, we may need to restrict charging to less busy periods.
  9. Does the footway outside your property have streetlights? If it doesn't, or if the lighting is operational only during part of the night, charging may be permitted in daylight hours only. We may allow applicants to charge during hours of darkness if suitable means of highlighting the cable protector can be put in place to ensure the cable protector is fully visible, however this will be entirely at the risk of the applicant and the Council does not accept any liability from any incidents arising from this.
  10. Do you have anywhere available on your property where excess trailing cable can be stored off the public highway?
  11. Will you be able to place the cable perpendicular (at a right angle) to the direction of travel for pedestrians?

Cable protection requirements

If you are given permission, you will be responsible for sourcing your own cable protector. It must meet the following requirements to avoid tripping hazards and provide an accessible ramp for wheelchairs and pushchairs.

The cable protection must:

  • Not be more than 32mm deep with a gradient no steeper than 1 in 5, and comparable to a Defender Nano Lux cable protector or similar
  • Be flush with the footway surface
  • Cover the full width of the footway (loose, unprotected cables should not be exposed on any part on the footway, multiple protectors must be used if necessary)
  • Be high contrasting (yellow on black footway surface)
  • Be laid perpendicular (at right angles) to the direction of pedestrian traffic
  • Be protected by an approved residual current device (RCD) 

Loose cables must be stored off the public highway (inside property or in private front gardens). Cables and connection points must be certified for use outdoors.

Apply for permission to place an EV charging cable across a public footway