The government must step up funding to install fast charging points around the country and provide incentives to businesses if the UK is to meet its carbon reduction targets. That is according to a report today from the Social Market Foundation (SMF), which says ministers need to address the “high upfront costs” of adopting electric vehicle fleets.
EV battery technology is not at the point where electric commercial vehicles can compete like-for-like with their conventional fuel-powered counterparts, argues the independent thinktank. “Fast-charging points are critical in that period to encourage and reassure businesses to go electric,” it says.
The previous government failed to meet its target of having six or more rapid or ultra-rapid EV chargers at every motorway service area in England, according to the SMF, and most of a £950 million rapid charging fund established earlier this year has yet to be spent. Moreover, it maintains, money that has been allocated has gone to grid connections rather than the installation of fast, regular chargepoints.
Concerns about the cost and reliability of EVs also figure significantly for small and medium-size enterprises, according to interviews carried out for the report. While the cost of new EVs remains prohibitive for many companies, secondhand EVs have issues around their dependability.
Although Sir Keir Starmer’s administration is likely to push ahead with mandating automakers to transition to EVs making up 100% of new vehicle sales in the 2030s, the SMF argues that “it won’t be matched by demand if government steps back from commitments to help with upfront costs and improving charging infrastructure”.
With the country “poised at a crucial moment in the decarbonisation journey, additional cost support and infrastructure funding is needed to sustain momentum”, says the thinktank.
