Britain’s worst town for EV drivers has just eight chargers per 100,000 cars – where does your area rank on the list?
BRITAIN'S worst town for EV drivers has been revealed - with just eight chargers per 100,000 cars - where does your area rank on the list?
With electric cars expected to become more popular in 2024, it is worth knowing which UK areas are best set up to deal with the boost - and those that may struggle.
Statistics shared by revealed the towns with the best and worst infrastructure measured by charging points per number of registered vehicles.
Ranking last was Hereford, with a measly eight top up stations per 100,000 EVs.
Other areas that landed in the bottom three included Derry, with 11 chargers, and Inverness which offered 14.
Moving to the middle of the list, Worcester came in at 35th place with 76, which was narrowly beat by Dudley at 78 and major city Glasgow had just 83.
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Meanwhile, Newcastle only boasted 109, and Manchester didn't provide many more with 131.
Popular seaside tourist spot Brighton was found to have 187 top up stations, and earned a spot in the top 10 best locations.
Birkenhead, Salford, and Oxford were next on the chart ranging from 197, 220 and 226 respectively.
They were followed by Liverpool, Edinburgh and Coventry, with figures reaching 351.
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Research determined London was in third place, offering 353 charging points and Croydon second with 2,175.
Overall Sutton claimed first place at the top of the table with an impressive 3,188 top up points.
An expert from One Sure Insurance told : "When considering switching to an electric vehicle, it is not just the availability of public charging points that you need to think about, but also how you will charge your EV from home.
"This is especially important for drivers who do not have car parking spaces at home.
"If cities are not properly prepared for an influx of electric vehicles, many drivers will not make the switch."
The figures were drawn from a website called Zap-map.com - which shows drivers where to find chargers and compared it to vehicle registration stats from the ONS.
It comes as the government plans a £70million scheme to increase the availability of super fast chargers along motorways.
The trial will involve 10 sites and Transport Secretary, Mark Harper, said: "This £70 million pilot scheme is the starting point and sends a message to consumers and industry that we are investing wisely and rapidly to grow the future of transport in the UK."
In addition, the Department of Transport added: "Investment here addresses the need for a highly visible and dependable longer-distance charging network to support drivers and accelerate future EV purchases.
"The pilot, which is being delivered by National Highways, will help gather evidence to inform the design of a full fund."
Meanwhile, Quentin Wilson has founded a group to provide further help for EV motorists.
"FairCharge is the national campaign to help harness the tremendous environmental, economic and social benefits of the electric revolution," he said.
"A key priority is to change the government policy where EV drivers without home charging pay four times the VAT rate for their electricity from public on-street networks."
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The former BBC Top Gear host added: "We also want to see measures in place for lower-income drivers to access electric vehicles and to see the price of electricity decoupled from gas - urgently."
He said this would help reduce at home EV charging costs and electricity bills.