Highest-ever electric car uptake recorded

9:53 am, August 3, 2016

MOTORISTS in the UK are buying more electric vehicles than ever; with latest figures confirming continual quarterly rises in plug-in car uptake.

Since records began in 2011, volumes of electric car registrations have risen steeply as motorists realise the benefits of owning an electric vehicle, which include low running costs and tax savings.

In the April-June period of this year, 38 per cent more electric cars were registered compared to the same period in 2015, building on a 27.4 per cent pick-up in the first quarter.

In addition to these quarterly gains, the first six months of this year pushed electric car registrations 31.8 per cent ahead of the first half of 2015. Plug-in registrations totalled 19,252 for the year-to-date, 4,640 units ahead of the same period last year.

The bumper start to 2016 pushes registration volumes close to 70,000 units since government introduced its Plug-in Car Grant in January 2011. The rapid rise in registration volumes show more people than ever are realising the benefits of going electric.

They are cleaner, cheaper to run, more reliable and with government support worth hundreds of pounds for home charging equipment, drivers can enjoy the convenience of a fully charged car every morning.

Transport Minister John Hayes said: ‘I am delighted to see record numbers of motorists coming round to the benefits of cleaner, greener vehicles, which are also cheaper to run.

‘The low-emission sector supports over 18,000 UK jobs and is a key pillar in our ambition for a low carbon, high tech and high skills economy.

‘We want to make the UK a world leader in electric vehicle uptake and manufacture, to ensure that by 2050 every car and van on our roads is a zero-emission vehicle.

‘We are backing this with one of the most comprehensive support packages in the world, with more than £600m of government investment to help grow the UK market.’