Skip advert
Advertisement

'We need to get our infrastructure ready for an electric-car revolution'

John McIlroy says upgrading the UK's electric car charging network will be key to keeping the country moving come 2030

Opinion Charging infrastructure

This week’s Top Story details how Volkswagen is still fighting to develop a more affordable version of its ID. electric cars, starting with a small SUV that could cost as little as £17,000 before any discounts or the plug-in car grant. It’s unlikely to reach dealerships until the end of 2025. But even by then, will the UK be ready for it?

Advertisement - Article continues below

Last week the Transport Select Committee warned MPs of the potential for ‘blackspots’ in more remote areas of the country, where drivers might struggle to find electricity to keep them on the move.

The points made echoed those of Kia’s UK president Paul Philpott when he spoke to us recently. He described the situation as already being “critical” because the impending ban on the sale of combustion-engined cars is “only eight and a half years away”.

“It’s all very well having clusters of chargers on the M6 and M1,” Philpott told us, “but what about people who want to buy and drive EVs in North Wales? Government support is needed to make sure we have enough chargers, and on trunk roads across the UK.”

We think he has a point. The car manufacturers have been given a huge target to reach by 2030, but the glut of new EVs – including, Volkswagen hopes, more affordable ones – is proof that they are responding. Consumers, too, are becoming ever more prepared
to consider switching to pure-electric mobility.

What’s left is the infrastructure – and Philpott is right in suggesting that relying on private enterprise alone won’t suffice. We need to get ready for an electric-car revolution, in the same way that we needed to roll out the internet two decades ago. The patchy broadband still endured by several areas of the country should be a lesson on how legislation (and yes, public finances) may be required, along with market forces, to ensure that all of the UK keeps moving.

Check out our complete guide to electric car charging in the UK here...

Skip advert
Advertisement
Editor-at-large

John started journalism reporting on motorsport – specifically rallying, which he had followed avidly since he was a boy. After a stint as editor of weekly motorsport bible Autosport, he moved across to testing road cars. He’s now been reviewing cars and writing news stories about them for almost 20 years.

Skip advert
Advertisement

Recommended

'Budget 2024 missed the big chance to incentivise EVs and stop the blizzard of cheap Chinese car imports’
Opinion - Quentin Wilson
Opinion

'Budget 2024 missed the big chance to incentivise EVs and stop the blizzard of cheap Chinese car imports’

Quentin Willson of FairCharge thinks the failure to support the UK electric car industry in the 2024 budget could have far-reaching effects as cheap C…
6 Mar 2024
“Reports of the death of the internal combustion engine are wildly exaggerated”
Opinion - combustion engines
Opinion

“Reports of the death of the internal combustion engine are wildly exaggerated”

Andy Palmer thinks that the internal combustion engine, in partnership with e-fuels, still has a big role to play if the application is right
12 Jan 2024
“Faster manufacturing can bring a new wave of cheap EVs from Europe’s big players”
Opinion – cheap EV manufacturing
Opinion

“Faster manufacturing can bring a new wave of cheap EVs from Europe’s big players”

The Chinese may yet falter: quicker, more efficient production could see prices of European electric cars fall
19 Oct 2023
‘MP Greg Smith is fighting for motorists instead of against them’
Opinion - Greg Smith
Opinion

‘MP Greg Smith is fighting for motorists instead of against them’

Editor-in-chief Steve Fowler has met many politicians throughout his career, but MP Greg Smith is a little bit different
30 Aug 2023

Most Popular

Road tax set to rise in April: here’s how much more you’ll pay
Road tax documentation
News

Road tax set to rise in April: here’s how much more you’ll pay

Drivers with newer cars will now pay £10 more per year, although the biggest gas guzzlers fare even worse
28 Mar 2024
Posh new trim level for Dacia Sandero while the Sandero Stepway gets more power
Dacia Sandero - front
News

Posh new trim level for Dacia Sandero while the Sandero Stepway gets more power

Both the Sandero and Sandero Stepway ranges have been tweaked, gaining more safety features to meet the latest regulations
26 Mar 2024
Car Deal of the Day: updated Skoda Enyaq at 0% APR and a free home wallbox charger thrown in
Skoda Enyaq iV - front cornering
News

Car Deal of the Day: updated Skoda Enyaq at 0% APR and a free home wallbox charger thrown in

Skoda’s family-friendly EV with 348-mile range is our Car Deal of the Day for 26 March
26 Mar 2024