Approximately 8,700 electric vehicle (EV) chargers were installed across the UK last year, the highest annual increase to date but one that is failing to keep pace with growing adoption.
The UK now has approximately 37,000 EV chargers, according to EV charge point app Zap-Map. It means that the number of EV charge points increased by 30% year on year, compared to a 38% increase in the number of EVs on British roads.
Justin Godfrey-Cass, head of transport solutions, Wireless Logic, said: “Despite the government’s commitment to installing EV charging points, unfortunately, the wider rollout has been hampered by planning constraints, cost of installation, need for access, and the need for resilient and highly secure two-way connectivity in locations where wired infrastructure isn’t always readily available.”
Increasing the number of EV chargers is crucial ahead of the government’s ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars in 2030. The government in August revealed a £20m effort to add 1,000 public chargers.
UK startups looking to take advantage of the shift to electric vehicles include Arrival. It plans to build an electric van, bus and car.
“First and foremost, new charging points must meet the needs of the consumer. EV users expect a charge point to be fully operational at all times, keep their data secure, an bill them correctly, this will generate customer loyalty, repeat visits, and hopefully new customers,” added Godfrey-Cass.
Zapp-Map is an electric vehicle charging app, which raised £9m in Series A funding in August last year.
Whilst electricity vehicles are being billed as the future of transport, companies such as Toyota are exploring other options with its hydrogen pickup.
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