More electric vehicles in West Berkshire

Electric vehicle ownership locally is picking up speed, RAC analysis shows. There is a rise from 285 to 409 private owners in West Berkshire in the twelve months to September 2020. This reflects a 53% national increase on the year before.

RAC spokesman Rod Dennis says:

“While starting from very small beginnings…the growth in pure electric vehicles is extremely promising. There is a long way to go, but it’s clear that the numbers are only going one way. The RAC estimates that there are approximately 213,000 battery electric vehicles in the UK, with more than 100,000 of these registered last year alone. RAC research also shows a growing number of UK drivers are planning to switch to an electric vehicle next time they change their cars – up from 3% in 2018 to 9% in 2020.“

The charging of plug-in vehicles can be a cause for concern. Locally, electric charging is available at the Kennet Shopping Centre, Newbury, and West Berkshire Council is trialling a scheme of 36 on-street residents’ car charge points around Newbury and Hungerford. This scheme is to make plug-in electric vehicles more accessible to people who do not have driveways. These areas were chosen because these are residential streets where most houses do not have off-street parking.

Here’s further information on the local electric charge points .