UK Drivers Demand EV Charging on 12,500 Streets

Welcome, Net Zero News readers,

As the demand for electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure intensifies, recent findings reveal a significant surge in requests for on-street charging points across the UK. Vauxhall’s initiative, the Electric Streets of Britain campaign, has seen over 12,500 requests for charge points on streets nationwide, highlighting a growing need for accessible EV charging solutions.

Launched in August 2023, this campaign aims to assist households without driveways—approximately 40% of UK homes—in locating nearby EV charging options. The necessity of such infrastructure is underscored by the fact that nearly a quarter of British households requiring EV support are now within a four-minute walk of a charge point. This statistic marks a positive shift towards making electric mobility more accessible for everyone.

Drivers can register their need for charging through a national database at electricstreets.co.uk. This information is then shared with Vauxhall’s partners in the Electric Streets of Britain initiative, including Char.gy, Connected Kerb, and SureCharge. Local councils across the UK can access these requests through the NEVIS online service, allowing them to effectively identify and implement the charging solutions their communities need.

New research conducted by Vauxhall in partnership with Cenex paints an encouraging picture for the future of EV infrastructure. The study reveals that 22.9% of British households needing electric vehicle charging options are now within a short walk of a charge point, a notable increase from 19.6% in 2024. This translates to an additional 300,000 households gaining access to charging facilities since August 2024, with projections suggesting that infrastructure supply is currently outpacing demand by approximately one and a half years.

Even in some of the UK’s most remote regions, the growth of charging infrastructure is promising. For instance, the Isles of Scilly have seen an impressive rise in electric vehicle infrastructure coverage from 0% in August 2024 to a remarkable 65.9% today. Other notable improvements include Redbridge and Wrexham, which have experienced coverage growth of 39.1% and 26.1%, respectively. Furthermore, 29 local authorities across Great Britain have already established sufficient charge points to meet their anticipated demand for 2030, representing around 8% of the nation’s total.

However, despite these advancements, the latest report highlights that significant work remains to be done on a national scale to ensure adequate infrastructure. A staggering 243 councils across Great Britain are reported to have low coverage of accessible chargers in relation to the number of electric vehicles in their areas. Rural regions, particularly in Wales, Scotland, and the East of England, continue to lag behind the rest of the UK in terms of charging access on motorways.

Moreover, the research indicates that the pace of installation for charging infrastructure has not kept up with the growing demand over the past year. Alarmingly, only two-thirds of the additional infrastructure deemed necessary to support the increasing number of electric vehicles was deployed in the previous 12 months. Current utilisation trends suggest that approximately 110,000 more near-home charge points are required in optimal locations to meet the projected demand by 2030.

Nevertheless, there is reason for optimism. With the support of England’s LEVI Fund and Scotland’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund (EVIF), an estimated 106,000 chargers are expected to be deployed, offering hope to the 12,500 drivers who have expressed a need for charging options in their vicinity.

Vauxhall’s latest Freedom of Information (FOI) research further fuels this optimism, revealing that the percentage of councils with dedicated EV charging policy officers has risen from 31% in 2023 to 51% in 2025. Additionally, 44% of councils reported having installed at least one on-street charger by August this year, a significant increase from 31% in 2023.

According to official figures from Zapmap, the number of public charge points available across UK roads has soared by over 50% since the end of 2023, climbing from 53,865 to more than 84,000. However, the issue of regional disparity remains a pressing concern, as approximately 30% of these chargers are concentrated in London alone.

Steve Catlin, Managing Director at Vauxhall, commented, “The 12,500 registrations we have received through Electric Streets demonstrate that there is no one-size-fits-all solution for drivers. It’s essential that all stakeholders work collaboratively to sustain the momentum we’ve witnessed over the past two years.”

Robert Evans, CEO of Cenex, added, “A year has passed since our collaboration with Vauxhall to develop improved metrics for evaluating the delivery of public EV infrastructure. Utilising these more relevant, actionable, scalable, and measurable metrics, it’s encouraging to witness the progress made in the last 12 months and assess, at a granular level, whether current public and private plans are effectively addressing the needs of residents and drivers.”

As we look ahead, it is crucial to monitor the developments in EV infrastructure across local authorities in Great Britain. The following table illustrates the local authorities that have experienced the most significant changes in electric vehicle infrastructure coverage from August 2024 to August 2025:

In conclusion, while the progress made in expanding electric vehicle infrastructure across the UK is encouraging, the journey towards achieving a comprehensive and accessible charging network is far from over. Collaboration between local authorities, private enterprises, and the community will be pivotal in overcoming the challenges that remain. By harnessing the momentum generated by initiatives like Vauxhall’s Electric Streets of Britain, we can pave the way for a sustainable and electrified future, ensuring that every driver has access to the charging facilities they need.

Let us continue to champion the cause of net zero together!