Hundreds more rapid charging points installed in UK to help drivers go electric

(The Guardian, 28 Aug 2023) Fast charging stations that allow for longer journeys are being added in regions beyond London.

Charging companies are plugging the gaps in the UK’s high-speed charger network, with hundreds added this year outside London in a shift that will help end the “range anxiety” that holds back some would-be electric car buyers.

The capital and the south-east still have far more chargers of all speeds – ranging from slow to rapid and ultra-rapid – than the rest of the country. But the presence of high-speed chargers, generally used for quick recharging on longer journeys, is increasing in other regions as electric car sales surge.

The West Midlands, east Midlands, the south-west of England and Wales all installed more rapid or ultra-rapid chargers than London during the past year, and their networks have grown more rapidly than the south-east of England, according to data from ZapMap, which maps UK public charging points.

Nine out of 12 regions of the UK installed more than 100 rapid chargers during the past year, ZapMap’s data showed.