Peterborough council has highest proportion of EVs

Peterborough council has the highest proportion of electric vehicles (EVs) in the UK, and Blaenau Gwent in Wales has the lowest.

Researchers from comparethemarket.com compiled data from the Department for Transport’s Vehicle Licensing Statistics to compare which local authorities and which London Boroughs have the highest proportion of EVs.

According to the data, while London and Birmingham have the highest number of EVs overall, (28,907 and 19,988 respectively), the local authority with the highest proportion of EVs is Peterborough, where 5.27% of their vehicles are electric. This works out at about one in every 20 vehicles. 

In comparison, generally, areas in Northern Ireland and Wales were found to have the lowest proportion of EVs. According to the researchers, this is largely due to the lack of charging infrastructure. 

Fermanagh and Omagh local authorities in Northern Ireland have 0.09% EVs, and Blaenau Gwent in Wales has the lowest uptake overall with 0.1%. 

The researchers also found that London is ahead of other cities when it comes to electric vehicles, with one in every 100 vehicles (1.09%) being electric, compared to 0.71% for the nation as a whole. 

Westminster was the borough with the highest percentage of EVs with 3.66%, this was followed by Kensington (2.61%) and then Camden (2.55%).

However, the researchers highlighted that this is not the case across the whole city, with some London boroughs still falling behind the national average when it comes to the proportion of EVs. For example, Havering has 0.38% EVs, followed by Dagenham (0.42%) and Bexley (0.44%).

Dan Hutson, head of motor insurance at comparethemarket.com, said: ‘Not so long ago, the number of electric vehicles on the road was a lot smaller.

‘The UK didn’t have the infrastructure in place and many people considered switching to electric as too expensive. 

‘It’s great to see that in a relatively short amount of time, this has started to turn and the UK is well on its way to achieving the government’s targets of going electric and banning the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2035.

‘With almost a quarter of a million EVs on UK roads, and the number rising constantly, the UK is becoming a nation of more eco-conscious and ‘greener’ motorists.’

More information is available here. 

Photo Credit – Pixabay