Local authorities called on to boost public EV charge point numbers A new league table highlights those areas with good or poor coverage The Transport Secretary has written to local authorities in the UK, urging them to make use of funding available to increase electric vehicle charging infrastructure. The calls from Grant Schapps MP come after the Department for Transport has published a ‘league table’ of data, showing public EV charge point numbers across areas of the UK. Using data from Zap-Map, the information shows how many public EV charge points there are per 100,000 population, broken down by local authority. There is also a separate column indicating how many rapid chargers there are in each area. The government wants driving an electric vehicle to be convenient and viable for those anywhere in the country, and that local authorities have a key role to play in the roll out of infrastructure. London is leading the way in terms of charge point numbers, with the region having almost 4,000 devices. All but two areas to have more than 100 charge points per 100,000 people are London local authorities. The City of London is comfortably top with 414 – well ahead of Westminster in second place with 190 charge points per 100,000 residents. Considering two island local authorities in Scotland are the other areas to have more than 100 points per 100,000 people, it should come as no surprise that Scotland as a region is in second place behind London. At the other end of the scale, there are still 100 local authorities that have fewer than 10 public chargers per 100,000 population. While in itself this may not be much of an issue, considering most EV charging is carried out at home, it does indicate a tougher time of things for those either visiting the area or looking to run an EV without access to off-street parking at home. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said: “Your postcode should play no part in how easy it is to use an electric car, and I’m determined electric vehicles become the new normal for drivers. “It’s good news there are now more charging locations than petrol stations, but the clear gaps in provision are disappointing. I urge local councils to take advantage of all the government support on offer to help ensure drivers in their area don’t miss out. “To help increase the provision of charging locations, the government is offering grants for the installation of charge points on the street, in work and at home. We are also offering grants to lower the upfront cost of these cars so everyone is able to experience the benefits.” Minister for the Future of Transport George Freeman said: “Mapping charge points and producing a league table of availability by council area is intended to raise awareness. “There are now more than 22,500 public charge points and at least one rapid charge point at over 95% of all motorway services areas. To help level up the country, we’ve recently doubled the funding available for councils to build charge points on residential streets.” To take a look at the league table and a map of how local authorities perform per population, visit the DfT website here. Alternatively, click below to find public EV charge points in your area on Zap-Map.
Origin: Local authorities called on to boost public EV charge point numbers