The latest statistics on public charge point installations in the first quarter of 2024 have been released, showing a significant increase in the overall rate of installation compared to 2023. According to the data, there has been a 35% rise in the installation of electric vehicle chargers, with a quarter of them being high-powered devices ideal for longer electric journeys.
In the first three months of the year, 55 new charging hubs were installed across the country, indicating a continuing trend towards high-powered hubs preferred by electric drivers, especially for longer journeys. As of the end of March, there are now 59,590 charging devices installed, marking a 10.5% increase since the end of 2023 and a 47% increase since March 2023.
Of the total number of chargers installed in the first quarter of 2024, 25% are high-powered devices designed for en-route charging, with over 800 of them being ultra-rapid chargers with speeds exceeding 150kW. The top five networks providing high-power charging infrastructure in the UK have installed 75% of the rapid and ultra-rapid charge points since the end of 2023.
New entrants and challengers in the market, such as Smart Charge from Sainsbury’s and Applegreen Electric, have also made their mark by installing a significant number of chargers across the UK. The data also shows a growth in the number of high-powered charging hubs opening nationwide, with 55 new hubs welcoming drivers in the first quarter of the year.
Additionally, the provision of on-street chargers to support drivers without home charging capabilities continued to grow, with almost 1,500 new on-street chargers installed in the first quarter of 2024. Greater London still has the majority of these chargers, but the rest of the UK saw a considerable increase in the number of on-street devices being installed.
Melanie Shufflebotham, Co-founder & COO at Zapmap, expressed enthusiasm about the rapid pace of charger installations in 2024, especially the growth in high-powered chargers and hubs. She highlighted the importance of providing reliable and diverse charging options to electric car drivers, ultimately encouraging more people to make the switch to electric vehicles.
