USER-CHI set out to make electric-vehicle charging easier to use and more practical for cities. Funded through the EU’s Horizon 2020 programme, the project ran from February 2020 to January 2024 and was coordinated by ETRA Investigación y Desarrollo, a Valencia-based company. Its consortium brought together cities, research organisations, utilities and technology providers. 468
The project developed and tested charging technologies, business models and policy approaches in five demonstration areas: Barcelona, Berlin, Budapest, Rome and Turku. Murcia and Florence served as replication cities, exploring how selected solutions could be transferred to other places. The sites were chosen along the Mediterranean and Scandinavian-Mediterranean TEN-T corridors, with differing urban contexts and levels of electric-mobility adoption. 5812
The work ranged from planning tools to charging infrastructure. Barcelona’s metropolitan area installed ultrafast charging points and tested inductive charging, while Turku piloted charging and secure parking for light electric vehicles, using renewable energy and storage. USER-CHI also produced the INCAR app, which helps drivers find charging points from different providers, check availability and tariffs, book a point and pay. 711
The project’s stated aim was not only to demonstrate equipment, but to assess how well solutions serve users and work across providers and borders. Its outputs included a planning tool for locating charging infrastructure, guidance for designing user-centred charging stations, and recommendations for policymakers on interoperability, accessible infrastructure and stakeholder engagement. 2811
The Eurocities tender describes a related five-video series intended to document long-distance trips using USER-CHI charging solutions, including charging stops, interviews and use of an interoperability app. The proposed routes connected cities in Spain, Italy, Hungary, Croatia and Finland. 1