A NEW GRANT is to support people without driveways to access a charging point for electric vehicles.

It comes as part of a range of measures launched today aimed at increasing the use of electric vehicles, including another grant that even people who do not own one of the vehicles can apply for.

The new Apartment Charging Grant is geared towards residential dwellings that do not have access to a driveway such as apartments, duplexes, and mixed-use developments.

Meanwhile, the existing EV Home Charger Grant is expanding from today to enable tenants and homeowners to apply for a grant whether or not they own an electric vehicle. “This can also be used for visitor use or at rented accommodation,” the Department of Transport said.

From September, the Home Charger Grant will only provide funding for smart chargers to “improve safety, prevent excessive electrical demand and facilitate better integration with renewable energy sources”.

Grant applicants may receive up to €600 against the cost of a charger. 

Additionally, as part of a new trial scheme, businesses will be able to test an electric vehicle for free for three months to encourage commercial operations to switch their fleets to electric.

The government is trying to reach a target of nearly one million electric vehicles in Ireland by 2030.

“We have to transform the way we get around our country so that we do not rely on expensive, carbon emitting and polluting fossil fuels,” Minister for the Environment Eamon Ryan said.

In a statement, the minister said that “one of the ways we can help decarbonise our transport sector is by accelerating the uptake of electric vehicles, both passenger cars and the commercial fleet”.

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The minister announced the details at the launch of Zero Emissions Ireland, a new office under the Department of Transport that will oversee the transition to zero-emission vehicles.

“This new Office will be at the heart of this transformation, charged with supporting consumers, the public sector and businesses to continue to make the switch to electric vehicles and to lead on the delivery of our ambitious target under the Climate Action Plan 2021 to have 945,000 electric vehicles in the Irish fleet by 2030,” he said.

“We are already seeing that there is an appetite for this switch with the increases in the purchase of electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles over the past year.

“I hope that the grants and initiatives we are launching today, along with Zero Emission Vehicles Ireland, will make it easier for people and businesses to continue to make the switch and then to be able to charge their cars, no matter where they live.”