Electric revolution is coming to the region

Just 12 months ago, the intent to purchase either electric or plug-in hybrid was at 18 per cent, according to research from independent car buying website carwow, but now demand for plug-in hybrid vehicles is also on the up, with almost one in three looking to opt for a plug-in hybrid option.

Millennials are leading the ‘eco-drive’ with a massive 42 per cent pledging to go green by 2020, in the recent study of 2,034 motorists. However, despite the continuous rise in interest from drivers - and promises of significant investment in an infrastructure designed to support an electric revolution - in the past 12 months, only 5,021 publicly available charging points have been added to the network, taking the total to a mere 17,729 charging points across the UK. Consequently, the country is still woefully unprepared to cope with the anticipated demand from the 4.4 million extra car owners looking to go green.

For drivers in Yorkshire, the number one barrier is still this lack of charging points, which is currently putting off 67 per cent of those surveyed, followed by 60 per cent who said the price was the issue, and 55 per cent who said that ‘range anxiety’ - the fear that one charge wouldn’t get UK drivers where they need to go - was their major concern.

The research also revealed attitudes towards government pressure to make the switch away from traditional fuels, with the introduction of increased taxes and a 2040 deadline, but nine in ten of those surveyed felt that, instead of deterring people from traditional fuel, they should be taking further steps to help drivers into lesser polluting vehicles. 25 per cent believed that alternatively-fuelled vehicles would not become commonplace in their lifetime.