In a new strategy published today, the government said it would funnel £1.6bn into expanding the UK charging network. The announcement came alongside the confirmation of a £1bn investment plan from BP to expand and upgrade its Pulse EV charging network across the UK.
The strategy includes a target to make around 300,000 public chargers available by 2030 - equivalent to almost five times the number of fuel pumps on UK roads today.
In 2020, the Climate Change Committee, which advises the government on its net zero ambitions, estimated 325,000 public charging points would be needed by 2032. Currently there are around 29,000 public plug-in points.
However, the RAC said it was concerned 300,000 may still not be enough.
Nicholas Lyes, RAC’s head of policy, said: “While the government’s expectation of having 300,000 chargepoints available by 2030 might sound impressive, we are concerned that this is not going to be sufficient with drivers looking to switch to...