Local authorities in the Midlands will roll out more than 16,000 new EV chargers in the coming weeks with the help of £40m in government investment.
A total of 13 local authorities across the region have received £40.8m from the Local EV Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund to boost charging infrastructure in cities, towns and rural areas.
The area already has more than 10,000 public chargers available but the new project, supported by Midlands Connect, will provide many more drivers with easy access to charging near their home, helping to drive EV take-up among those without driveways.
Future of Roads Minister Lilian Greenwood said: “Electric vehicles will power growth, cut emissions and improve lives in the Midlands and beyond as we continue to deliver our Plan for Change.
“The new charge points will boost charging infrastructure across the Midlands, including in smaller towns and rural areas, ensuring that EV owners and those looking to switch can drive with the confidence they will always be close to a charge point, no matter where they live.”
Maria Machancoses, CEO of Midlands Connect, added: “We are delighted that our collaboration with local authorities has resulted in a significant funding boost for electric vehicle infrastructure across the region.
“This is a great step in moving towards a reliable electric vehicle charging infrastructure network across the Midlands, which will become increasingly important as we move closer to the 2035 ban on diesel and petrol vehicles.
“We will continue to work with local authorities to accelerate the rollout of electric vehicle infrastructure across the Midlands.”
It’s been a rather busy fortnight of good news for electric vehicles, with last week’s confirmation of the Plug-in Van Grant extension, first announced in the Autumn Budget and backed by £120m cash. The Government has also removed the training requirement for heavier electric vans.
The Department for Transport also announced last week that it’s extended the Workplace Charging Scheme and EV Chargepoint Grant for a further year. The Workplace Charging Scheme has also now hit the landmark of co-funding more than 1,400 charge points at schools and over 59,000 chargers at offices and workplaces across the country.
On top of this, Zapmap announced this week that the UK has passed the 75,000 EV charge point milestone, following a 32% surge in installations since February 2024.
Hundreds of thousands more chargers are on the way too; the 2024 Autumn Budget pledged an investment of more than £200m in 2025/26 to accelerate EV charge point rollout, while private charging firms have £6bn of investment in the pipeline.
With over 382,000 EVs sold in 2024 – up a fifth on the previous year – the UK is the largest EV market in Europe.
Drivers also have more choice and options than ever; many used EVs are now at the same price as ICE equivalents and one in three used electric cars is under £20,000. There are also 21 brand-new electric cars with a £30,000 RRP.
The average range of a new electric car is now 236 miles – equating to about two weeks of driving for most people –while emitting just a third of the greenhouse emissions of a petrol car during its lifetime.
