M1 services ‘one of few with no electric vehicle charging points’
GOVERNMENT TARGETS FOR COUNTRY ‘HAVE BEEN MISSED’, THE RAC SAYS
Forest East is one of a handful of service stations around the country with no electric car charging points, according to the RAC.
The motoring organisation said government targets for electric car chargers near motorways have been missed.
The Department for Transport (DfT) set an ambition for there to be at least six rapid or ultra-rapid chargers at every motorway service area in England by the end of 2023.
But just 46 out of 119 sites (39 per cent) meet the target, according to RAC analysis of data from charger locator service Zapmap.
That was up from 23 per cent at the end of April.
Apart from Leicester Forest on both sides of the M1, Tebay South on the M6 and Barton Park on the A1(M) – have no charging facilities.
Rapid charge points can add 100 miles of range to an electric vehicle (EV) in about 35 minutes.
They are seen as crucial to encouraging more motorists who make long journeys to switch from petrol or diesel to electric.
A DfT document from March 2022 stated that “many operators” of motorway services had “embraced the ambition” to install six highpowered chargers by the end of 2023, with “over 70 per cent” of locations having a plan to deliver this.
It said: “We will continue to work with site operators to ensure that every site is reached.”
The document said a £950 million rapid charging fund would support the rollout of these charge points across England’s motorways and major A roads.
The fund was set to be available for applications from last spring but has not been opened.
A £70 million pilot scheme for up to 10 motorway service areas and a consultation on the wider fund were launched in November.
RAC spokesman Simon Williams said: “It’s clear from our research that the government has fallen well short of its target of having six highpowered chargers at every motorway service area in England.
“There is undoubtedly an eagerness among charge point companies and motorway service operators to install these types of units but unfortunately, it’s often the high-power cabling to the grid that’s the major barrier which is out of their hands.
“Hopefully, once the government’s rapid charging fund kicks fully into action, some of these hurdles will be overcome.
“The wide availability of ultraLEICESTER rapid charging is crucial in giving current and future EV drivers confidence to know they can easily make journeys beyond the range of their vehicles in a time-efficient way.”
A DfT spokeswoman said: “The number of public charge points is surging and about 96 per cent of motorway services now offer charging facilities. As well as our £70 million pilot to help roll out ultra-rapid charge points, we are driving forward the biggest reforms to our electricity grid since the 1950s – halving the time it takes to build networks and speeding up connections.”
The wide availability of ultra-rapid charging is crucial in giving current and future EV drivers confidence
Simon Williams, RAC