Street Lamps Could Power Europe’s EV Future. Here’s How!

The Urban EV Charging Problem

The statistics are staggering: 60% of Dutch residents don't have driveways. They live in apartments, terraced houses, or urban developments where home charging simply isn't an option.

This mirrors reality across European cities, from Berlin's apartment blocks to Paris's dense arrondissements. I experienced this challenge firsthand living in Germany, where I was charging 95% of the time at public chargers, constantly hunting for available spots.

The problem extends far beyond individual inconvenience. Cities across Europe are struggling to deploy sufficient charging infrastructure without cluttering streets or requiring massive grid investments.

The CityCharge Solution: Integration Over Addition

CityCharge's approach is elegantly simple: instead of adding more infrastructure, make existing infrastructure work harder.

The company integrates 22kW dual-socket AC chargers directly into lampposts, either through retrofitting or new installations designed for dual purpose.

"We do renew the underground infrastructure because a regular public lighting infrastructure is not sufficient to charge cars," Heimen clarifies. "Usually a lamppost only has a six ampere grid connection, which is nice for public lighting, but not suitable for EV charging."

The Technical Implementation

The process involves installing poles with dual access windows:

• Lower section: Grid operator connections

• Upper section: Integrated charger at appropriate height for EV charging

Remarkably, old lampposts don't go to waste. "The old lampposts that are taken out are being reused in the city where there has been some damage," Heimen notes, creating a circular approach to urban infrastructure.

Why Location Matters: The 400,000 Opportunity

You might wonder whether lampposts are actually positioned usefully for EV charging. The answer is surprising.

"It's 15% of all parking lots in the Netherlands, so above ground parking, public parking lots, are positioned exactly in between a lamppost," Heimen reveals.

This means 400,000 lampposts in the Netherlands are already ideally positioned to serve two parking spots each, creating 800,000 potential charging locations without requiring new site planning or additional street space.

The 58% Emissions Advantage

Perhaps the most compelling aspect is the environmental impact. By integrating charging into existing infrastructure rather than adding separate poles, CityCharge achieves 58% reduction in emissions per site.

This reduction comes from various factors:

Installation: Less site work, including digging work and laying down new cables.

Transportation: Fewer components mean reduced logistics emissions

Maintenance: The same crews maintaining public lighting service the charging components

"The installation company and the service and maintenance company is usually the same company that's already doing the public lighting," Heimen explains. "So they have a spare unit in their truck, and as they do their rounds in the city, they also can change a charging point if needed."

Load Balancing

CityCharge has connected multiple lampposts to a single grid connection with intelligent load balancing. They have a guaranteed 3× 50 A connection.

"We connect multiple lampposts, up to seven lampposts. So which means 14 charging points. And we do the load balancing over all the seven lampposts," Heimen describes.

The system dynamically adjusts power distribution based on actual usage: "When there are only five cars positioned and charging, we divide it by five. When there are 14 cars, we divide by 14."

This approach optimizes grid usage while providing guaranteed charging availability across the network.

Next Generation Features

CityCharge's third generation charger promises two game changing capabilities:

Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G)

Enabling cars to feed energy back into the grid during peak demand periods, turning EVs into distributed energy storage.

Integrated Payment Terminals

Breaking free from app dependent charging by accepting credit cards, debit cards, and regular bank cards.

"You can pay with a credit card, a debit card, or a regular bank card, which makes it a lot easier for people, especially private people that drive an electric car," Heimen explains.

This brings AC charging in line with AFIR requirements already mandatory for DC fast chargers.

The Bigger Picture

CityCharge demonstrates how thoughtful innovation can transform existing resources to meet future needs. Their success provides a proven template for European cities facing similar urban mobility challenges.

With 400,000 strategically positioned lampposts in the Netherlands alone, and millions more across Europe, the potential for this approach extends far beyond current deployments.

For urban residents without home charging options, which represents the majority of city dwellers, solutions like CityCharge could be transformative. It's not about revolutionary technology or massive infrastructure investments. It's about seeing existing resources with fresh eyes and asking better questions.

The EV charging revolution may not come from space-age technology. It might just be hiding in the humble lamppost outside your window, waiting to be activated.

European Expansion: Proven Model, Growing Demand

CityCharge has moved beyond proof of concept to rapid scaling:

Current deployment: 25+ Dutch cities, 300+ installations
2024 target: 1,500-2,000 installations
Geographic expansion: Germany, France, and the UK

"We're entering the German market, entering the French market, and also entering the UK market. Basically throughout Europe at the moment," Heimen confirms.

This timing is crucial. Germany, where half the population lives in apartments, faces identical challenges to the Netherlands. The same applies to France's urban centers and the UK's terraced housing areas.

Open to Consulting & Collaborations

I'm currently open to:

• Consulting and advisory roles

• Strategic projects in eMobility

• Industry panels and data-driven content partnerships

If you're working on something where pricing strategy, charging infrastructure, or EV market positioning matters and you're looking for someone who combines industry insight with user-focused thinking, I'd love to hear from you.

Let's bring meaningful change to this space together.

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