The UK Cities Most Prepared For The Electric Car Takeover

Power supply connect to electric vehicle for charge to the battery.

The government has set a 2050 target of ‘most vehicles on the road being low emission’, but are we ready for that as a country?

We took a look at the UK as a whole, as well as drilling down into the capital and also the 11 most congested cities outside of London, to see how prepared they are to make the switch. Based on factors such as the population, the amount of public charging points and their increase rate since January 2019, as well as the volume of alternative fuel cars currently registered, the research revealed Southampton as the UK city that will be ready for the electric takeover the quickest.

Here you can see how prepared the major UK cities are:

Southampton currently has 77 charging points, a 13% increase since January, alongside a relatively low population compared to other major cities and 1,023 alternative fuel cars registered.

London has seen a 66% increase in charging points since the start of the year to almost 4,000, however due to its vast population (9m) and number of electric vehicles already on the road (123k), it still has a long way to go to be completely ready for the electric takeover.

Here are the UK’s most congested cities in order of how ready they are for the electric takeover:

Looking at the UK as a whole, a Department for Transport report in 2018 stated only 2% of registered vehicles were low emission. And while this seems a long way off target, the YoY growth shows the UK has had a 37% increase in low emission cars since 2016. If it continues at this rate, we will have 38.2m low emission vehicles on the road by 2034, meaning the government will hit its target 16 years before its 2050 deadline.

However, despite the target already predicted to be hit earlier than anticipated, the nation’s drivers have concerns.

The study highlighted ‘not enough charging points’ and ‘being stranded without charge or accessibility to charging services’, were people’s main concerns. The distance-per-charge was also a worry for half of motorists (47%), as well as their electricity bills increasing (27%) and it actually being more costly than owning a petrol/diesel vehicle (22%).

It’s interesting to see that while figures suggest the government are on track to hit their low emission vehicle target, perhaps even earlier than anticipated, the nation’s views and attitudes towards alternative fuel vehicles, means we still have a long way to go.

It seems the biggest concern is the number of charging points and it’s understandable why. If the YoY figures are anything to go by, we simply won’t be equipped to supply the demand, however it’s encouraging the government is increasing its funding for charging points in residential areas. Hopefully seeing more around the country will inspire the nation’s drivers to make the switch and help us to achieve the initiative as early as predicted.