More than half of all new car registrations in the UK by 2027 could be electric vehicles according to analysis carried out by Go Ultra Low. This would see around 1.3 million new EVs registered each year and keep the country on course to meet the government’s target of all new cars and vans to be electric by 2040.
Go Ultra Low – the campaign for ultra low emission vehicles (ULEVs) backed by the UK Government, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, and EV manufacturers – has carried out the research in collaboration with the above groups, alongside Auto Express, the Committee on Climate Change, and the RAC Foundation.
Motoring magazine Auto Express backs the forecast, with its recently announced Driver Power 2016 survey revealing a number of EVs as the best cars around. The survey is completed by car buyers that have lived with their vehicle for a few years and rates all aspects of vehicle ownership.
More than 63,000 Plug-In Car Grant (PICG) eligible vehicles have bee registered since the grant began in 2011, with last year’s registrations double those of 2014, which in turn were three times that of the year before.
Steve Fowler, Auto Express Editor-in-Chief said: “The positivity and appreciation of electric vehicles by their owners in this year’s Driver Power survey is suggestive of a step-change in public perception of these vehicles. We are moving towards a tipping point for electrically-powered cars, so it’s entirely possible that by 2027 these vehicles will dominate the market as the top choice for new car buyers.”
Poppy Welch, Head of Go Ultra Low, said: “The huge interest in electric vehicles and their subsequent rapid rise in uptake has been spectacular so far, with more than 60,000 EVs registered in the past five years. These rises are just the start of the electric revolution as Go Ultra Low analysis suggests that electric vehicles could dominate the new car market as early as 2027.”
