Skip to main content

UK funds plug-ins

The UK Government has announced that it will provide grants of 25 per cent towards the cost of a new, plug-in electric car, capped at US$7,630.
February 2, 2012 Read time: 1 min
The UK Government has announced that it will provide grants of 25 per cent towards the cost of a new, plug-in electric car, capped at US$7,630. Some $46 million is also being provided for a network of electric vehicle hubs, called Plugged-In Places, which will see charging infrastructure appearing in car parks, major supermarkets, leisure and retail centres as well as on the street.

The Plug-in Car Grant, which is open to both private and business fleet buyers, will be distributed directly to the consumer at the point of purchase and will be available across the UK from January 2011, by which time a range of eligible vehicles is expected to be available.

The first Plugged-In Places have been named as London, Milton Keynes and the North East; and between them they will be installing over 11,000 vehicle recharging points during the next three years. A second competition for Plugged-in Places funding is to follow later in the year, with consortia from the West Midlands, Cornwall, Sheffield, the Lake District, Greater Manchester and Northern Ireland having already confirmed their intention to bid for the next wave of funding.

Related Content

  • Rethink required to reduce road transport’s environmental impact
    March 15, 2016
    Against a background of a renewed focus on limiting the rise in average temperatures, Colin Sowman looks at a project that is taking a holistic approach to the environmental impact and safety of road transport. At the COP21 meeting in Paris last December, almost 200 nations agreed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in an effort to keep the rise in global temperatures to 2°C) compared with pre-industrial levels. The transportation sector is a major contributor to the production of CO2, one of the main green
  • Data exploits parking potential
    March 11, 2015
    David Crawford parallel parks with innovations in two continents. Surveys of US cities indicate that drivers searching for parking can account for up to 37% of all urban traffic congestion. A 2011 study by IBM of 20 cities around the world found that nearly six out of ten drivers had abandoned their search for a parking space at least once; while motorists generally spent on average 20 minutes looking for a sought-after spot.
  • TRL to lead project to encourage wider adoption of plug-in vehicles
    September 11, 2015
    The Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) has appointed TRL, the UK’s Transport Research Laboratory, to lead its Consumers, Vehicles and Energy Integration (CVEI) project. The US$8 million project will examine how the UK energy system needs to adapt in order to accommodate and encourage greater adoption of plug-in hybrid and battery electric vehicles. The project aims to understand the required changes to existing infrastructure, as well as consumer response to a wider introduction of plug-in hybrid and el
  • Chinese deal for UK firm
    February 13, 2012
    A UK firm has struck a major deal with China Highway Engineering Consulting Group Company (CHECSC) for road maintenance materials.