- Lack of Strategy: Majority of UK Councils Have No Plans for On-Street EV Charging
- Regional Disparities: London Dominates On-Street Charging with Limited Progress Elsewhere
- Charging Challenges: High Costs and Limited Access to Public Charging Stations
The overwhelming majority of local councils in the United Kingdom have no plans to assist drivers in charging their electric vehicles on residential streets without off-street parking.
Car manufacturer Vauxhall contacted all 414 local authorities, of which 289 responded, and discovered that 72% have no published strategy for enhancing residential charging on streets without driveways.
Despite the availability of government funding, only 69% of councils in England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland have installed on-street chargers.
This is Money has the exclusive ability to disclose which municipalities have plans in place and which do not.
With forty percent (40%) of British households lacking driveways, rising to sixty percent (60%) in urban areas, and the government set to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles in 2030, millions of motorists will rely on a network of localized charging stations for plug-in vehicles in the future.
The report indicates that there are only 17,047 residential on-street chargers in the United Kingdom, of which 75 percent (12,708) are in London.
It indicates that there are only 4,339 additional devices across the remainder of England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
The nation’s capital will get 6,397 on-street charging stations next year, while the rest of the country gets 3,580.
Vauxhall also found that 69% of councils and local governments have yet to implement on-street charging stations.
In addition, 71.6% of councils said they had no plans to install residential on-street charging stations in the future.
This includes both standalone devices and the conversion of existing lampposts into charging stations.
How costly is it to charge an electric vehicle away from home?
Currently, EV owners without off-street parking depend on charging facilities at their workplace – if available – or the existing public infrastructure of devices, which can be limited in certain regions and is significantly more costly to use.
As of the end of July, the UK had installed 45,737 public electric vehicle charging stations, according to government data.
With approximately 1,360,000 plug-in vehicles registered on British roads (approximately 840,000 battery-electric vehicles and 520,000 plug-in hybrids), one public charge station is required for every thirty electrified vehicles.
Zap Map reports 19.2% of installed devices are rapid (25kW to 99kW) or ultra-quick (100kW+) chargers.
The April RAC Charge Watch found that rapid charging cost 69.2p per kWh and ultra-rapid charging 74.2p.
According to the RAC, to charge an EV with a 64kW battery to 80 percent using the public network will cost £35.43 and £37.99, depending on the device speed.
In contrast, home charging remains “significantly cheaper” despite elevated domestic energy costs.
Under Ofgem’s variable residential power pricing, EV owners charging from zero to 100% will spend a maximum of £19.20.
In addition, some energy providers offer tariffs with decreased overnight prices to help reduce the cost of charging a vehicle, making it significantly cheaper than using a public charging station.
