How is a site laid out?
The planner places eight bays on the drawing, two per charger, with the transformer station at the edge of the car park.
One question takes longer than expected: which side of the car is the charging inlet on?
The questionWhat makes a layout easy to use, for every driver and every car?
- Drive innose or tail first
- Chargecable reach decides
- Reverse outas in any car park
- Drive infrom one side
- Chargecharger beside the lane
- Drive onno reversing
Many hubs combine both: most bays side by side, one or two drive-through lanes for longer vehicles.
Accessible to everyone
In its recitals, asks that charging stations be accessible and easy to use for as many people as possible, in particular older people, people with reduced mobility and people with disabilities. Its examples: enough space around the parking place, no installation on a kerbed surface, buttons and screen at a suitable height, and a manageable weight of the cable.
The details drivers notice
- Cable reach. Inlets sit front, rear, left or right, depending on the car. Cables and charger positions must cover all of them without blocking the next bay.
- Light and shelter. Good light at night, a canopy against rain and snow, a clean surface.
- Signs and numbers. Each charger and bay clearly numbered, so the app, the screen and the hotline refer to the same place.
- Protection. Bollards or kerbs around the chargers, without putting the charger itself on a raised kerb.
Check your understanding
3 questions. Answer all of them to complete this stop. Each answer explains itself.
Which example does AFIR give for accessible charging stations?
AFIR names enough space around the bay, no kerbed surface, suitable height of controls and a manageable cable weight.
Why do drive-through lanes suit some vehicles better?
Long vehicles and trailers struggle to reverse into a bay. Drive-through lanes cost space, but solve that.
Why does cable reach matter so much at a public hub?
Front, rear, left or right: the cable must reach every inlet without blocking the neighbouring bay.
- AFIR Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation (EU) 2023/1804: EU rules for public charging, from payment to coverage. EV charging fundamentals, stop 08 Glossary
- EUR-Lex: Regulation (EU) 2023/1804 (AFIR), Articles 3, 5 and 20 and recital 38. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/1804/oj. Checked 09 Oct 2026. © European Union, reused under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.