that reminds us of refuelling stations; the entire process of finding a place to charge, queuing if necessary, parking your car and charging it via an extension cable before driving off is strikingly similar. This offers cues to drivers on how the entire process works, helping to make sense of it even if EV charging is more complex. WHY’D YOU HAVE TO GO AND MAKE THINGS SO COMPLICATED? Legitimising early-stage markets is, however, not straightforward. Their new specifics require adaption within existing systems and practices. This means no early-stage market gets it correct right from the get-go but requires ongoing market-making work. Compared to refuelling, EV charging is more complex due to the variety of usage situations, charging speeds and EV charger set-ups. This was particularly true for first EV generation models, which were partly ‘ACcompatible only’ (Alternating Current, with slow to moderate charging speeds). This limited access to infrastructure and increased charging complexity came at the same time, when the network was in its infancy. This is no longer the case, with most new generation EVs being compatible with both AC and DC (Direct Current, fast to ultra-rapid charging speed). This showcases how adaptions for legitimisation span beyond the main market setting of EV infrastructure due to its close links to the EV market. With higher infrastructure complexity comes a need to engage or learn these new workings, and this requires information. In the case of the EV market, early adopters had to rely on informal information sources such as forums to navigate the market, to understand how charging works, or to evaluate the charging network at the time. While it is common for earlystage markets to rely on informal structures, moving towards official and reliable information sources is a sign of greater market establishment. This role has mainly been taken on by market actors, such as Zapmap which is now the market leader in EV charging mapping. A considerable legitimisation issue of the EV charging infrastructure market was its unreliability. Due to many new market entrants setting up EV chargers but not maintaining them, and charging maps not displaying live information on EV chargers, EV drivers relied on local forums to exchange insider knowledge on charger reliability. This was addressed by incorporating live data into EV charging maps showing whether an EV charger is running or not. Further, this was also addressed by the UK Government though the Public Charge Point Regulations (PCPR) from 2023. This requires 99% uptime for public rapid and ultra-rapid charging infrastructure. IT NEVER ENDS Does this mean we are all done now? By no means. To achieve the UK’s objective of phasing out the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030, more market and legitimisation work is needed and ongoing. While having the physical EV infrastructure in place is great for visibility, it is not currently well signposted. Unlike petrol stations, which are typically indicated on road signs, EV charging stations often cannot be due to various legal reasons, such as sign size restrictions, the requirement for service areas to be indicated, or the absence of standardised local council processes for EV signs. This makes the visible quite invisible. Therefore, despite there being the more than120,000 EV chargers mentioned earlier, they are not on an equal footing profile-wise with petrol stations. Furthermore, the various manifestations of the market infrastructure (e.g. types of chargers, set-ups, charging processes and locations) make it less accessible. While recent efforts towards greater accessibility, such as the accessible chargepoint standard and public charging design guidance, are encouraging, adapting the existing physical infrastructure in all its forms will be another major undertaking. It is one that is necessary to make the EV transition accessible to all. FIFTY FOUR DEGREES | 29 Dr Nicole Bulawa is a Lecturer in the Department of Marketing. Her work focuses on how markets are built and changed, and spans electric vehicles, sleeper trains, and popular culture. The article Should the wheel be reinvented? Market-referencing in the electric vehicle market charging infrastructure, by Dr Nicole Bulawa, of Lancaster University Management School; Professor Katy Mason, of the University of Salford Business School; and Professor Frank Jacob, from ESCP Business School Berlin, is published in the Journal of Business Research. n.bulawa1@lancaster.ac.uk
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