The national electric car charging network saw record growth in 2024, but is it accelerating fast enough to meet green targets?

The UK’s EV charging infrastructure saw a record year of growth in 2024, official figures confirm.

The number of charging points installed in Britain over the calendar year was the highest annual level on record, with tens of thousands of new chargers added as the government and industry push to ease charging fears among EV directors.

The latest published figures from charging point mapping service ZapMap show that more than 20,000 new devices were installed in the past year, bringing the total number of public chargers to 73,699.

This represents an annual increase of 38 percent.

More good news for EV drivers is that it is the fastest device types that have seen particularly high growth; ultra-fast (150 kW+) devices have increased by 83 percent since the end of 2023, the figures show.

News of the charging boom in Britain comes after the National Audit Office said the number of public charging points is on track to meet the government’s target of 300,000 devices by 2030.

In particular, the growth of ultra-fast devices and charging hubs designed for drivers who want to charge their vehicles as quickly as possible on longer trips will help alleviate EV owners’ range and charging concerns.

There are now more than 7,000 devices over 150 kW in Britain that can typically charge an electric car battery from 10 to 80 percent in just 15 to 30 minutes.

The figures show that there are now 14,000 50 kW fast chargers.

The number of 50kW charging hubs (six or more 50kW) also increased from 264 at the end of 2023 to 537 at the end of 2024.

London is still the focus for charging installations, while other parts of the country are neglected

Distribution in the UK is increasing, with nine out of twelve geographic areas in Britain now having more than 1,000 50 kW+ chargers.

Although still less covered, Wales and the North West made good progress in 2024, unlike Northern Ireland which is lagging behind with just 78 new high-powered charging installations last year and only 164 in total.

The destination charger network – which allows EV drivers to charge while they stop – continues to grow with an additional 12,000 chargers now available in destinations including restaurants, hotels, car parks and leisure centres.

However, the number of on-street chargers is not such a nationwide picture, with most of the growth concentrated in London, with 72 percent of new on-street electric vehicle chargers installed in the capital.

However, ZapMap notes that government-funded LEVI (Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure) projects are starting to pay off, so there should be a fairer distribution of on-street charging supply by the end of 2025.

Melanie Shufflebotham, co-founder and COO at Zapmap, said: “Last year was another record year for charging infrastructure growth, with en-route charging points in particular being installed ahead of the growth in electric vehicle sales.

‘As we move into 2025, we can expect to see the benefits of PCPR consumer regulations come into effect, combined with the impact of LEVI-funded projects reaching local authorities and bringing fairer access to charging devices.’

RAC senior policy officer Rod Dennis said that while it is ‘positive’ to see the availability of EV charging points improving, there are still concerns about the higher cost of using public devices compared to those using home chargers and their household appliances can charge less. rates.

‘There is still a huge price gap between public and home chargers, partly due to the higher VAT rate on public charging points (20 percent) compared to the domestic rate of 5 percent.

‘Charging point installations and cheaper public charging costs are two sides of the same coin when it comes to increasing private demand for electric vehicles.’

Is Britain on track to meet electric vehicle charging quotas?

The latest report from the National Audit Office (NAO) shows that the number of charging points has increased so far in line with what is needed to meet 2030 targets.

By 2030, Britain needs at least 300,000 charging points and the NAO says this is ‘achievable’.

The installation of charging points is seen as a key way to achieve the government’s EV targets, which include banning all new petrol and diesel cars by 2030, and making all new cars and vans sold emissions-free from 2035.

An important way to encourage motorists to use electric vehicles is to provide public charging points. That’s why achieving these goals is so important to implement.

Although figures are currently on target, the NAO has warned that ‘more needs to be done to ensure adequate coverage in all parts of the country’ and that it is more expensive than necessary to install chargers due to planning permission and connections to the electricity grid. .

How satisfied are EV drivers with the charging network?

A recent survey by leading EV charging point app ZapMap shows that the public charging network is as important as ever.

Half of EV owners use public charging at least once a month, even if they have a home charger installed at home.

While the average satisfaction score for the UK public charging network in ZapMap’s survey was just 64 out of 100, three in five respondents say public charges will improve by 2024.

Fifty-three percent of EV drivers said they will use charging hubs (which are dedicated charging stations with multiple chargers and charging stations) in 2024, up from 47 percent in 2023.

However, motorway services remain the most popular charging locations – showing that many people are indeed taking long journeys in electric vehicles – with 58 percent of respondents charging there.