The challenge funds are possible thanks to a partnership approach with Scottish Enterprise, who are facilitating the process through their Can Do Innovation Challenge framework and competition.
Through the Can Do competitions, £600,000 has been awarded to support innovation in charge point accessibility and to tackle bay hogging. A further £500,000 is available to support further leaps forward in technology that can accelerate the roll out of zero emission heavy duty vehicles across Scotland.
The Can Do innovation challenge call is open to any eligible organisation in Scotland. Successful Scottish companies will be provided with 100% funding to support research and development feasibility projects to detail their designs and build the commercial case for their innovations.
Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero, Energy and Transport Michael Matheson said: "As we transition to a net zero economy, we need to tap into Scottish innovation and maximise the opportunities put forward by businesses who are specialists in their field. The Can Do competitions through Scottish Enterprise are exciting opportunities to test new approaches and fund research and development.
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"No one should be left behind from future net zero transport options and I'm pleased to see a second challenge fund foster innovation on charge point accessibility. That principle of leaving no one behind applies to sectors of industry also – and so it is important that we're supporting new approaches to decarbonise heavy goods vehicles through a new challenge fund.
"This is a fantastic opportunity that has delivered some exciting decarbonisation projects. I look forward to seeing once again how the Can Do competitions can support the best of Scottish innovation and help us achieve our world leading net zero targets."
Head of Low Carbon Transition for Scottish Enterprise Andy McDonald said: "It is important that all the supporting infrastructure and technology around sustainable transport is accessible, inclusive and innovative.
"The current and future projects through these challenge funds for zero emission heavy duty vehicles and charge point accessibility will help ensure that the wider ecosystem around the decarbonisation of transport is explored to provide opportunities for businesses to expand technology and solutions whilst also helping meet net zero targets."
Further information on the zero emission heavy duty vehicle innovation challenge call and the application process can be found on the Scottish Enterprise website.
From the £600,000 that has been awarded to support innovation in charge point accessibility and to tackle bay hogging – Miralis Data and Arceptive will move to prototyping and testing their solutions to tackle the issue of non-electric vehicles parking in EV charging bays. Connected Kerb and Urban Foresight will demonstrate their innovations to improve accessibility of EV charging bays to people with disabilities.
More information on how Transport Scotland is working to decarbonise transport is available on the Mission Zero website.
