Unlocking Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure in the North of England

Strategic Insights -

The Transport for the North (TfN) region, which includes areas such as Cumbria, Northumberland, Cheshire, and Greater Manchester, is breaking new ground with its Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Framework (EVCI) to address the significant barrier to ownership of electric vehicles. The region has over 8 million registered cars, 61.1 billion miles driven annually, and a high level of car dependency, necessitating a comprehensive plan for public chargepoint provision.

The partnership between TfN and Ordnance Survey (OS) has led to the development of a model using machine learning to identify households with driveways or off-street parking access, which have the potential for access to chargers at home. The analysis has already been shared with local authorities across the region, enabling them to target specific areas without access to charging facilities and better plan, monitor, and forecast public need.

Key Takeaways:

  • The new analysis has identified a significant difference in EV charging infrastructure within regions in the TfN area, with some roads having over 500 homes but only 12% of them having driveways.
  • A recent report by the Public Accounts Committee highlighted that 43% of all chargepoints are hosted in the South East and London, while the north has a higher proportion (47%) of households without driveways.
  • The analysis has also highlighted regional differences in car dependency, with around 8 million registered cars, 61.1 billion miles driven annually, and a high level of car dependency in the North.
  • The projected requirements for public chargepoint plugs in the region show that at least a tenfold increase could be needed by the end of the decade, with 178,000 to 240,000 public chargepoint plugs required across the North of England.
  • The roll-out of the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) fund now means that £109 million is available across the region to support local authorities with improvements to public chargepoint provision.
  • Aggregated driveway data can be accessed via TfN's online visualiser, and household-level data has been shared with requesting local authorities across the north.
  • The new analysis is expected to save thousands of pounds by providing a free tool for effective and efficient infrastructure planning.

Statistics:

  • Over 6.4 million households in the region have driveways or off-street parking access, and 47% of them have driveways.
  • The number of public chargepoint plugs available in the region is over 17,500, more than double the number two years ago.
  • The projected requirements for public chargepoint plugs by the end of the decade are 178,000 to 240,000 plugs.
  • The roll-out of the LEVI fund provides £109 million for local authorities to improve public chargepoint provision.
  • The region has over 8 million registered cars, with 61.1 billion miles driven annually by cars and taxis.

Sources:

  • Transport for the North (TfN) - Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Framework (EVCI)
  • Ordnance Survey (OS) - OS Maps API
  • OS National Geographic Database (OS NGD) - Land Use and Buildings themes
  • Public Accounts Committee - Report on Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure
  • OS - Public Sector Geospatial Agreement