Gloucestershire Echo

Electric cars charging ahead

- By MIKE TORPEY Driving Force

UK electric car registrati­ons continue to set records as latest figures place the total number of new 100 per cent electric and plug-in hybrid cars registered last year at 59,911.

That return makes it the most successful year for electric cars to date and equates to one new electric car registrati­on every nine minutes in the UK. The total also means the market grew by 19 per cent compared to 2017. The end-of-year figure marks a continued trend of consumers and businesses switching to ultra-low emission vehicles.

The fourth quarter of the year saw a further 15,057 plug-in cars registered between October and December in 2018. Once again plug-in hybrids accounted for the bulk of the market with 74 per cent of registrati­ons.

Pure electric cars also saw a SIGHYBRIDS nificant boost in 2018, up 14 per cent on the previous year and taking the number of 100 per cent electric and plug-in hybrid cars registered in the UK to date to 196,343.

Last year was the seventh consecutiv­e year of growth for the electric car market, thanks to the increasing number of models available for consumers and businesses alike, as well as a trend for consumers making more sustainabl­e choices.

In fact, recent research by Go Ultra Low found that nearly a fifth of Brits would like to make the switch to an electric vehicle in 2019.

The year ahead certainly has the potential to be another strong year for registrati­ons as a range of new models are set to hit the market, including the new all-electric Kia e-niro, Audi e-tron and recently announced Nissan LEAF which will feature an increased battery size.

 ??  ?? The Audi e-tron
The Audi e-tron

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United Kingdom