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Why 2024 could prove pivotal for electric vehicles
Zeroing in: assessing the UK's EV infrastructure landscape
Toby Poston
Corporate affairs director, BVRLA
This year is a pivotal one for the UK's transition to cleaner, greener road transport. A change of government brings a change of direction. New regulations – such as the Zero Emission Vehicle mandate – bring new market dynamics.
Now in its sixth year, the BVRLA's Road to Zero Report brings all of this together to provide an annual assessment of the UK's progress towards zero-emission road transport. The comprehensive report ranks overall progress and delves into the performance of ZEV demand, infrastructure, and supply for cars, vans, and HGVs.
The 2024 report paints a mixed picture and highlights that blanket solutions are not the answer. Targeted, tailored support is the only way by which the UK will achieve its goals. That is certainly the case for infrastructure, where one-size-fits-all charging solutions simply do not exist.
When considering progress with charging infrastructure, the Road to Zero Report assesses public chargepoint deployment and reliability, user experience, ease of implementation and local authority engagement. While public charging availability and reliability are performing well, other key performance indicators remain challenging.
Availability and reliability are up. Public chargepoint numbers have increased to 2,687 devices added in April 2024, compared to 1,677 in June 2023. The percentage of out-of-service chargepoints has decreased from 4.5% in June 2023 to 1.4% in April 2024. Data indicates that rapid chargepoints installed after 2022 are more reliable on average.
The Department for Transport is aiming to have 300,000 chargepoints in the ground by 2030. As things stand, we are on track to achieve that, as long as the installation rate continues to grow exponentially. Maintaining that growth will become more challenging as we approach the target date, we can’t take the progress to date for granted.
Improved reliability is important but amounts to nothing if accessibility is overlooked. All users need to be able to use the network. Physical restrictions, such as the size of charging bays and length of cabling, continue to pose challenges, especially for van fleets. Van accessibility remains unmonitored, leaving thousands of units unavailable to operators. When vehicle downtime is already a key barrier for many operators as they look to transition to electric vehicles, being able to trust that the network will be in place – and working – when they need it is non-negotiable.
Pre-booking offers that solution but is yet to roll out. Chargepoint operators (CPOs) are exploring pre-booking options, but trials are limited. Currently, no booking services are available across major EV fuel card providers. The ability to book charging sessions is vital for commercial fleets, allowing them to plan with confidence and limit business disruptions.
“Availability and reliability are up. Public chargepoint numbers have increased to 2,687 devices added in April 2024, compared to 1,677 in June 2023”
It is not all about the public network though. Operators up and down the country are exploring how and where to get charging infrastructure installed on site, many to great success. BVRLA member feedback indicates that, while connection costs have generally improved, the application process remains cumbersome and subject to delays. Data for 2023 shows that Distribution Network Operators (DNOs) are meeting targets for time-to-quote and time-to-connect, but real-world experiences highlight ongoing challenges.
Several government initiatives are addressing these issues to reform the connections process. The BVRLA is collaborating with the Energy Networks Association to produce guidance for firms navigating the grid connections process. This will give fleets the support they desperately need to navigate the complex and unstandardised connections process.
Local authority (LA) engagement is improving and goes a long way to addressing the public and private challenges. 39% of LAs have an EV strategy showing some engagement with fleets, up from 20% last year. However, only 5% demonstrate clear engagement efforts. The number of LAs with dedicated points of contact has risen to 57%, from 38% in 2023. Despite this, over 50% of LAs lack an EV strategy, and many remain unengaged. With Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) funding allocated to 44 councils, this is a pivotal moment for LAs to consult fleets in their plans.
Through initiatives such as the BVRLA’s Fleet Friendly Charging Index, the progress made by local authorities in advancing EV charging infrastructure is being monitored. The index evaluates fleet engagement and measures undertaken to meet fleet needs. The BVRLA encourages LAs to sign the Fleet Friendly Charging Pledge, committing to consider fleet operators and drivers in their infrastructure plans and engage with the fleet sector.
As programmes such as the LEVI fund gather momentum, progress will accelerate. What is critical is that fleets remain a voice at the table when funding is being committed. One-size-fits-all doesn’t work.
