The Government has revealed its aim to expand the UK’s charging network – to 300,000 public charging points by 2030.
Funding of £1.6 billion, under the Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Strategy, coupled with new legal requirements on operators will make charging vehicles more accessible and see drivers of EVs able to pay by contactless, compare charging prices and find nearby chargepoints via apps.
According to Next Green Car, there were 420,000 electric cars at the end of February and only 29,600 public charge points, according to Zap-Map.
£500 million will be invested to bring public chargepoints to communities across the UK, including a £450 million Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) fund, which will boost projects such as EV hubs and on-street charging, so those without driveways don’t miss out.
A pilot scheme for the LEVI fund has launched, which will see local authorities bid for a share of £10 million in funding, allowing selected areas to work with industry and boost public charging opportunities.
The existing £950 million Rapid Charging Fund will support the rollout of at least 6,000 high powered super-fast chargepoints across England’s motorways by 2035.
This comes on top of ministers’ pledges to continue addressing any barriers to private sector rollout of chargepoints, such as local councils delaying planning permission and high connection costs.
Chargepoint operators are already committed to installing an additional 15,000 rapid chargepoints across England’s entire road network – a quadrupling of the current offer – and over 100,000 on-street chargepoints by 2025.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “We’re powering ahead with plans to help British people go electric, with our expanding charging network making journeys easier right across the country.
“Clean transport isn’t just better for the environment, but is another way we can drive down our dependence on external energy supplies. It will also create new high-skilled jobs for our automotive and energy sectors and ultimately secure more sustainable and affordable motoring for all.”
To coincide with the Government’s announcement, bp pulse has revealed its own plans to spend £1 billion on developing charging infrastructure in the UK. Richard Bartlett, Senior Vice President, bp pulse, said: “This £1 billion investment is vital to provide the charging infrastructure the UK needs. We’re investing to build a world-class network.
“This investment allows us to deliver more. More high-speed charging in dedicated hubs and on existing fuel and convenience sites. More home charging services. And crucial enhancements to our digital technology that will make charging fast, easy and reliable.”
