New research from the Social Market Foundation has revealed that a massive increase in fast-charging infrastructure for electric vehicles (EVs) is needed in order to boost uptake of EVs among business fleets.
The report, “Running out of road: Navigating the route to decarbonised business fleets”, notes that while the business uptake of EVs is rising, fleet numbers significantly lag behind the uptake of passenger cars.
Between 2019 and 2023, the number of electric light goods vehicles (eLGVs) increased by 46,700 to hit 56,000 overall, while uptake of electric heavy goods vehicles (eHGVs) increased by 1,701 to reach 2,067. These numbers are dwarfed by the rise in electric cars on the road, which increased by over 1 million and reached 1.3 million.
This difference is even more stark when tracked over a longer period of time: between 2013 and 2023, eHGV registrations increased by 211%, eLGV registrations increased by 1,356%, and electric car registrations increased by 18,627%.
However, the report’s authors note that the increasing uptake of commercial EVs suggests a demand for electrifying fleets.
Concerningly, the report notes that while insufficient charging infrastructure represents a significant barrier for many businesses looking to electrify their fleets, several important subsidies that have thus far encouraged the development of new chargepoints, as well as subsidies for businesses who electrify their fleets, are set to end or be scaled back next year.
Applications for the electric vehicle infrastructure grant, which supports small businesses with the costs of installing chargepoints, will close in March 2025, and the plug-in van and truck grant is also set to expire without further investment from the government. Research by Frontier Economics cited in this report shows that the plug-in van and truck grant has been “crucial to growing the market”.
A lack of rapid chargepoints has also been identified as a major roadblock for mass business fleet electrification. Only 20% of the UK’s 61,000 public chargepoints are considered rapid or ultra-rapid; these chargepoints take between 20 minutes to an hour to charge the average car. Meanwhile, 59% of public chargepoints are slow, with less than 8kW power, which would take around eight hours to charge an average battery.
The report also questions the wisdom of the UK’s target of having 300,000 chargepoints installed by 2030. With predictions for EV numbers for 2030 sitting between eight and 11 million vehicles, many analysts believe many more than 300,000 chargepoint will be needed to meet demand. Forecasts by the Competition and Markets Authority suggests that up to 480,000 chargepoints will be needed by 2030, while the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) believes that at least 2.3 million chargepoints will be needed by 2030.
Finally, the report makes several policy recommendations to increase commercial and public EV adoption: First, the government extends key EV subsidies, ensuring that adoption in the commercial sector does not plummet. Secondly, the report recommends that the UK should follow Norway’s example and expedite funding for the rollout of EV charging infrastructure to ensure supply continues to meet demand. Finally, it suggests that the UK should implement social leasing that targets funding to low-income households, encouraging adoption while pulling thousands of people out of transport poverty.