There has been a 10% increase in charging devices on the network in the last quarter to April 2021, according to the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles.
Its latest report, the Electric vehicle charging device statistics: April 2021, showed available devices on the network increased by 2,015, up nearly 10% on the previous quarter (October to December 2020). It said rapid devices increased by 379, corresponding to a quarterly growth of almost 10%. The stats show that this is the largest absolute quarterly growth in both total and rapid devices since 2015, reports transportandenergy.com.
This means that as of the beginning of April 2021, there were 22,790 public electric vehicle charging devices available in the UK of the total devices available, 4,259 are rapid chargers.
Since 2015, the number of public devices has grown by 43% per year, on average. Rapid devices have increased at a much higher rate, with an average annual increase of almost 61%.
The coronavirus pandemic may have had an effect on device growth, with the increase in total and rapid devices over the last 12 months being 27% and 37% respectively, said the stats.
But, according to the figures, there is still an uneven geographical distribution of charging devices – with some local authorities having bid for funding for charging devices, while others have not.
It was also noted that London and Scotland have the highest level of charging provision per 100,000 of population, with 80 and 43 devices per 100,000 respectively.
Gill Nowell, Director, Electric Vehicle Association England, told transportandenergy.com: “As uptake of electric cars and vans continues to rise, it is imperative that roll-out of public charging infrastructure accelerates in line with demand. Whilst over 60% of households across the UK have access to off-street parking, meaning that the majority of charging can be done at home, overnight, there are swathes of the population that will need to find other charging solutions.
“The recent increases in number of public chargers are welcome, however it is concerning to note the geographical disparity in public charging. EVA England will be working with local authorities, communities, and across the EV charging ecosystem to support a strategic approach to roll-out of EV charging infrastructure to level up the playing field.”
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