Some 46% of local authorities in England have not yet set a target date for vehicle electrification, according to recent data from transport solutions provider GeoTab.
The report, titled Destination EV – Accelerating Local Authority EV Transition, sought to anlayse how well English local authorities are prepared for the switch to EVs ahead of the 2030 ban on new diesel and petrol cars.
“The findings of this report demonstrate a worrying lack of investment by local authorities across England ahead of the switch to electric at the end of this decade,” said David Savage, VP, UK and Ireland, Geotab.
“Some 27% of the UK’s emissions are attributed to transport, and fleets account for over 50% of new vehicles on the road.
Read more: Only a quarter of UK councils have EV transition plan
“Public sector fleet operators are in a position to lead this strategic shift by example, but they need the necessary investment, funding, and tools to support the transition to 100% electric.”
Some 113 local authorities across England were selected for the study, with 98 responding in time for its publication.
The publication also showed a lack of knowledge, awareness and investment in both vehicles and infrastructure across the country, despite the importance of zero-emission vehicles to the government’s net zero goals.
Read more: Majority of local authorities stalling on EV fleet transition strategies
Some key findings included that 20% of local authorities have yet to add a single EV to their fleet, only four councils’ fleets are made up of more than 20% EVs and that 54% have installed fewer than 50 charging outlets, including public, home and depot chargers.
Moreover, 74% of councils are still operating fleets of more than 90% polluting vehicles, with the average electrification rate among all bodies being only 4.2%.
Reasons given for the delays in adoption included limited resources and funding and the lack of availability of certain types of EVs needed for public services, such as zero-emission buses and heavy goods vehicles.
According to GeoTab’s Electric Vehicle Suitability Assessment, however, almost 40% of fleet vehicles could be electrified today while still saving funds.
Read more: Half of UK councils made no EV investment in 2021, report finds
The research also revealed that the vast majority of councils use some telematics in their fleets, but only 13% use the technology across the entire fleet.
It concludes that better guidance and best practice awareness is necessary, as well as improved knowledge sharing between local and national government. All of this, GeoTab claims, should be underpinned by a concrete target for EV transition.
