1,000 new public EV chargers get £20m boost for UK-wide for roll-out
The UK Government and industry have pledged over £20m for the roll-out of 1,000 new public electric vehicle (EV) chargers across England.
The Local EV Infrastructure pilot scheme has received £10m as part of the government’s £450m EV charging strategy for local authorities, which aims to increase the number of public EV infrastructure by a 10-fold to 300,000 by 2030.
The additional £10.9m were raised from private investment and public funding across the local authorities.
The charge points will be built across 9 local authorities – including Durham, Kent and Dorset – to help the levelling up of electric cars’ infrastructure.
“This scheme will help to level up electric vehicle infrastructure across the country, so that everyone can benefit from healthier neighbourhoods and cleaner air,” said decarbonisation minister Trudy Harrison.
Commenting on the announcement, Maria Connolly, head of future energy at UK law firm TLT, told Morning Wire the public charging ramp up will lead to “better data regarding usage and that data usage is critical for tracking revenue streams, building the business case and unlocking wider funding.”
According to recent data from Volkswagen Financial Services UK, while the UK is currently ahead of the Climate Change Committee’s EV adoption curve, it lags behind when it comes to infrastructure.
“The regional variances in charging infrastructure installation must also be addressed to underpin more equitable nationwide EV adoption,” Mike Todd, chief executive of Volkswagen’s Financial Services UK, said on 4 August.
Department for Transport (DfT) figures revealed that London and Scotland have the highest levels of EV chargers, with 116 and 55 devices per 100,000 inhabitants respectively, compared with the UK’s average of 48.