The government’s has today published its Electric Vehicle (EV) Infrastructure Strategy setting out how it plans to ensure the UK is “EV-fit” by 2030, the date after which sales of new petrol and diesel cars and vans will be banned.

The new strategy sets out a number of actions to boost the pace of roll-out of EV charging infrastructure, ensure they operate reliably for drivers and increase the number of connections of on-route chargepoints to support drivers making long journeys, and aims to reach a target of 300,000 chargepoints operational by 2030. The strategy also includes a £500m infrastructure package for local authorities to expand the provision of local public chargepoints.

In response, Commissioner Bridget Rosewell said:

“This is a promising package which tries to tackle the big obstacles – the need for a visible network of rapid chargers alongside better local provision for those without driveways or garages to charge up overnight.

“Government has now accepted the scale of the challenge and the need to empower local authorities to help ensure chargepoint coverage is accessible and fairly priced for all drivers.

“We’re shifting into drive mode, and we have a decent map for the road ahead, but we now need to keep our foot down and actually deliver the infrastructure needed to give drivers confidence to make the switch.”

In its recent Infrastructure Progress Review 2022 the Commission raised its concerns about the lack of robust delivery and deployment plans for charging infrastructure. In the first National Infrastructure Assessment in 2018, the Commission called for the creation of a national network of rapid chargers and action by local authorities to ensure more parking spaces were available for charger installations.