Research has found that there are now almost 1,000 more public EV charging points than petrol stations across the UK.
Nissan, who compiled the data, has said that there is currently 9,300 EV charging locations next to 8,400 fuel stations, with the crossover between the two happening a year ahead of the firm’s 2016 prediction.
Of these 9,300 sites, 1,600 currently support rapid charging, which reduce EV charging times significantly. According to EV charging locator Zap-map, there are currently two more rapid chargers installed each day. Most motorway service stations now support rapid charging, too.
Electric cars are currently recording significant increases in demand as more models come to market from a growing number of manufacturers. In July 2019, sales of new electric cars soared by 158.1 per cent – recording their biggest market share to date.
Kalyana Sivagnanam, managing director of Nissan UK, said: “Many consumers are saying their next car will be electric. That means the industry needs to ensure their desires are met with both the car – how far it can go, what technologies it has – and how it interacts with the world around it – where they can charge and how convenient that is for them.
“We’ve moved beyond the early concerns of range anxiety with EVs now exceeding the vast majority of customer’s daily driving needs. The next challenge is for charging infrastructure to keep pace with the number of EVs on the road, and that the experience of recharging is as enjoyable and effortless as that of all-electric driving.”
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Nissan currently has two EVs on sale – the best-selling Leaf, of which 400,000 have been manufactured since 2010, and the e-NV200 van – one of the leading electric commercial vehicles.
