Portsmouth 'leads the way' with more electric car charging points than UK average
PORTSMOUTH is ‘leading the way’ with green travel as figures show the city has more electric car charging points than the UK average.
Data from the Department for Transport (DfT) revealed there were 64 public charging points in the city in April this year.
This is a rate of 30 for every 100,000 people, more than the UK average of 27.
A total of 41 of these have been provided by Portsmouth City Council, with 36 on streets, three in car parks and two at the Park and Ride.
Councillor Dave Ashmore, the council's environment and climate change boss, said: ‘It is great news that we have a higher number of electric car charging points than the UK average.
‘It shows we are leading the way in supporting electric car use and shaping how things could be in the future.
‘We know that not everyone has or can afford an electric vehicle at the moment but we are preparing for when that changes. Everything we can do to improve air quality in the city is so important.’
Across the south east, there were 2,437 charging devices – at a rate of 27 per 100,000, placing it third out of England’s nine regions for accessibility.
The city council is working towards a scheme to provide 79 more charging points using a £200,000 government grant.
A DfT spokesman said: ‘Accessing charge points has never been easier and we want to make it easier still, with a further £10m to install chargers.
‘The government is considering the long-term future of incentives for zero-emission vehicles alongside our consultation on bringing forward the end to the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans.’
The figures also show there were were five new points added in Portsmouth since the last count in October, when there were 59.
Across the UK, the number rose by 19 per cent over the six-month period to just under 18,000 in April.
The number of electric cars in Portsmouth has increased to from 1,033 in 2015 to 2,025 in 2019.