A major barrier to the increased take-up of electric vehicles has been ‘range anxiety’, the fear of being stranded far from the nearest EV charge point with the battery running out. For obvious reasons, this is more common in some parts of the country than others, these being rural areas and, to a lesser extent, towns and cities where charge points are in short supply.
The more charge points are installed, the less of a problem this becomes and many people are cottoning on to the fact that this process is taking place. But it is also true that there remain some places where EV charge point installation levels are comparatively low, which is why it is still vital for more electricians to take EV charging courses to help meet this need.
To understand the state of play, we should first look at the good news: the number of instances of EV drivers actually getting stranded because their batteries have run flat before they could get to a charger has plunged to its lowest level yet, according to new data from the AA.
In June, just 1.4 per cent of EV breakdowns attended by the AA were caused by the vehicle running out of charge, while the figure for the last year was 2.2 per cent, both record lows. By comparison, the figures for previous Junes were 1.6 per cent last year, 2.8 per cent in 2021 and 4.6 per cent in 2019.
The increase in the number of charge points is not the only factor, as improvements in battery technology and range have also helped. But the overall picture is positive.
Even so, range anxiety may not be completely extinguished in areas with low levels of charger provision.
New research by motoring website Carwow has shown which parts of the country have seen the lowest take-up of electric vehicles. Its analysis of DVLA data showed that over the last decade, the UK-wide number of EVs has risen by 631 per cent, but in the Orkney Isles, it is just 133 per cent, while the Shetlands is the third worst off at 357 per cent.
However, this situation is not replicated across rural Scotland, with the other local authority in the lowest ten for take-up being the city of Dundee. Indeed, this list also includes Blackpool and Milton Keynes, so it is not all about being stranded out on the sticks.
By contrast, the top ten local authorities for take-up include six in Scotland, from the busy streets of Glasgow to the rural expanse of Moray.
This does not necessarily correlate to the number of chargers. For instance, government data for April 2024 showed that while the UK as a whole has 89 charters per 100,000 people, the Orkneys had 244, while Moray only had 77.8. Dundee, meanwhile, has more chargers per EV than anywhere else in the UK.
Elsewhere, however, the correlation is strong. For example, four Northern Irish authorities are in the bottom ten for EV take-up, and installation levels are very low there, with only Belfast above 50 charters per 100,000 and four below 20.
Therefore, it remains the case that many more chargers, as well as awareness about them, will be needed to ward off range anxiety.