EV charging

Last Friday, I decided to take the plunge and embrace the future of travel: I opted to drive an electric car from Kent to Manchester instead of my familiar, trusty petrol vehicle. To say I was a little nervous would be an understatement. Although I’ve made this journey many times before, it’s always been in a petrol car where my only planning has been deciding which service station has the best food options!

Planning became essential – I didn’t want to be a desperate soul on the side of a busy motorway on a Friday night without any charge. I found myself meticulously mapping out my route, identifying charging stations along the way to ensure I could reach Manchester without any hiccups. In particular, I made sure that the charging stations I picked offered rapid charging and for all vehicle types to minimise the time spent waiting.

Would I do it again? – Absolutely.  Am I completely confident in the infrastructure / price point? – Probably not.  I’m still a little sceptical and longer journeys do need more foresight.

Will the announcements in the budget improve my confidence?

There are more than 1 million electric cars on our roads (Vehicle licensing statistics: April to June 2024, Department for Transport, 2024) and the budget acknowledges that transitioning to electric vehicles is essential for decarbonising transport and supporting UK growth and productivity.  The government has committed to phasing out new cars that solely rely on internal combustion engines by 2030, and from 2035 all new cars and vans sold in the UK must be zero emission.

What is the government doing to support this?

• Investing over £200 million in 2025-26 to accelerate EV charge point rollout, including funding to support local authorities to install on-street charge points across England. This will build on the UK’s existing charging network, which continues to grow at pace with over 70,000 public chargepoints (EV charging statistics 2024, zapmap, 2024).
• Providing £120 million in 2025-26 to support the purchase of new electric vans via the plug-in vehicle grant and to support the manufacture of wheelchair accessible EV’s.
• Maintaining tax incentives to purchase electric cars through Vehicle Excise Duty First Year Rates and the Company Car Tax regimes, as well as by extending 100% First Year Allowances for electric cars and charge points for a further year.

Significant strides have certainly been made but does this go far enough?  “Range anxiety” and the availability of rapid chargers at strategic locations still remain primary concerns.  The budget did not include dedicated funds for high-capacity rapid chargers along motorways and other high traffic routes.  Time will tell if this foundation, funding and focus grows in line with adoption rates, public expectations and the transition to a zero-emission vehicle landscape.