London leads electric car revolution
Electric car drivers face a postcode lottery as the number of chargers varies immensely by region, a UK local authority league table shows. Note the City of London. Here, public chargers are most prolific as there are 414 per 100,000 people. This far exceeds the national average of only 23. The City of London is followed by:
- Westminster – 190
- Hammersmith and Fulham – 148
- Richmond-upon-Thames – 141
- Wandsworth – 127
- Orkney Islands – 108
- Kingston and Chelsea – 104
- Na h-Eileanan Siar – 101
- Milton Keynes – 96
- Hounslow – 84
- Islington – 78.
In contrast, there are numerous local authorities that provide fewer than 10 electric vehicle chargers per 100,000 people. There are none whatsoever in Barrow-in-Furness, for instance. Other regions such infrastructure might usefully evolve include:
- Hartlepool – 5
- Sefton – 5
- Knowsley – 5
- Halton – 6
- Harrow - 6
- Kingston upon Hull, City of – 7
- Rossendale - 8
- Bolton – 9
- Wigan – 9.
Grants for electric car chargers
Transport Secretary, Grant Shapps, wants electric car chargers to be prolific throughout the United Kingdom – not just in certain areas. He explained: ‘Your postcode should play no part in how easy it is to use an electric car.’ He has therefore made money available to increase the nation’s infrastructure. Mr Shapps added:
‘To help increase the provision of charging locations, the Government is offering grants for the installation of charge points on the street, in work, and at home. We are also offering grants to lower the upfront cost of these cars so everyone is able to experience the benefits.’ Money, for example, is available via the:
- On-Street Residential Chargepoint Scheme (£5 million)
- Workplace Charging Scheme (£500 per chargepoint socket and £10,000 per business)
- Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme (£500 per chargepoint socket).
Drivers demand more electric car chargers
The Government is keen to increase the number of chargers as it wants to encourage drivers to swap from traditional, internal combustion-powered vehicles. Why? Because electric cars cannot pollute (at least at the point of use). This is important as vehicle emissions are bad for the environment and contribute towards a range of health issues. Breathing problems, for starters.
However, the lack of public charge infrastructure is among the barriers that make motorists reluctant to swap to electric vehicles. The UK Government is clearly keen to address this concern. Once, therefore, there is a fast, reliable, national network of public chargers electric cars will be much more popular.