Brussels has over 10,000 EV charging stations, with thousands more to come. However, two groups of drivers cannot use these stations confidently: van drivers who do not know if their vehicle will fit in the bay, and people with reduced mobility (PRM) who cannot tell if a charger is physically accessible. The data to answer these questions do not exist today.
Our project solves this problem by creating the missing data. Over six months, we will physically survey 200 charging stations across Brussels, documenting in digital form the bay dimensions, curb height, wheelchair access space and other accessibility attributes. Each site will be photographed. The enriched dataset will then be published on Brussels’ open data platform.
As a result, PRM users and van drivers will be able to find a charging station that suits their needs by using a citizen-focused web portal. No app download is required; this is just a tool that works.
The pilot will include testing with the help of real users: 10 van drivers and 10 people with reduced mobility who will use the portal to find compatible chargers. Their feedback will help to refine the tool. The project will deliver a tested methodology – measurement protocols, a list of accessibility-relevant charging spot attributes, data schema and validation processes – so that Brussels can scale this approach to all 10,000+ charging points. The project is a partnership between WTP Technology and the Brussels-Capital Region, with engagement from regional PRM associations and logistics organisations.
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Van drivers and persons with reduced mobility cannot tell in advance whether a charger fits – there is no reliable data on charger accessibility.
Create and publish accessibility data for 200 Brussels charging stations, and build a portal that helps van and PRM drivers find compatible chargers.
Set of 200 charging stations enriched with accessibility data, a citizen portal tested with real users, and a methodology ready for city-wide scaling.
