July/August 2021

W hile EV and hybrid numbers on UK roads continue to climb, the lack of appropriate infrastructure to support the kind of growth envisioned by the government has been thrown into sharp focus. Starting with growth, according to motorparc data released by the SMMT, the number of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) on UK roads increased by 114.3% to 199,085 in 2020 while plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) also increased by 35.2% to 239,510. However, that totals just 1.3% of all cars. Hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) grew to 621,622 cars. Combined, internal combustion engine (ICE) models accounted for 97.1% of the total parc – or 34,018,599 units. Commenting on the figures, SMMT Chief Executive Mike Hawes said: “Despite massive growth last year, just one in 80 vehicles is a plug-in electric car – while nearly 10 million petrol and diesel cars dating back to before 2008 remain on our roads. Encouraging drivers to upgrade to the newest, cleanest lowest emission cars, regardless of fuel source, is essential for the UK to meet its ambitious climate change targets.” Huge Challenge Infrastructure will be key for enabling mass-market acceptance to go exponential. However, getting all new cars to be zero emission from 2035 will be a “huge challenge,” with consumer buy-in and matching charging infrastructure the biggest obstacles, a House of Commons committee has said. 60 AFTERMARKET JULY/AUGUST 2021 EV AND HYBRID VEHICLES www.aftermarketonline.net Infrastructure investment will be vital if motorists are expected to make the switch to EVs and hybrids, despite impressive sales growth EV AND HYBRID VEHICLES In a report published in May, the Public Accounts Committee has looked at the government’s intention to see new petrol and diesel car sale phased out by 2030 and for all new cars to be zero-emission from 2035. With just 11% of new registrations being ultra-low emission cars in 2020, the Committee believes the government has “a mountain to climb” to push this all the way to 100% in 14 years. Crucially, the report pointed out that government departments will need to consider the skills and capabilities required to support the changeover in the UK car parc, referring to industries like the garage sector. The Committee acknowledged that the number of charging points is increasing, but noted a great deal more will be needed to support the projected growth in electric cars. Echoing another recent report on environmental taxes, in which it said the Treasury and HMRC seemed “stuck in a bygone era”, with a very specific emphasis on tax Above: Infrastructure investment will be crucial to the ongoing roll-out of EVs EV percentage registered per region