Tower Hamlets rollout proves lamppost charging can scale fast

October 26, 2025

In one of the UK’s fastest public charging deployments to date, ubitricity has installed 2,000 charge points across the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in under four months, completing the project three months ahead of schedule.

The rollout, delivered in partnership with Volker Highways and operated under the Shell Recharge network, saw chargers integrated directly into existing lampposts. The approach cut installation time to less than 30 minutes per unit and avoided costly new infrastructure.

Ubitricity says the project demonstrates how local authorities can accelerate public charging provision “at speed and scale”. The 2,000 new chargers account for around 2% of all UK charge points, according to Zapmap, with early data showing strong adoption from residents.

At its peak, more than 40 chargers were installed per day, a model of coordination between council, contractor and provider that could help address the UK’s near-home charging gap.

Stuart Wilson, UK Managing Director at ubitricity, said: “This rollout shows that with collaboration and the right infrastructure model, large-scale public charging can be delivered quickly and efficiently.”