More fast charging options in Europe would convince 66 percent of future EV drivers to switch to electric driving sooner

Amsterdam, November 25, 2020—European EV drivers are still concerned about charging possibilities along the road. 38 percent of European citizens do not think that they’ll find a charging port anytime and anywhere they’d need it—but 25 percent are confident they will. More fast chargers along the road will help to diminish those barriers, especially since a trend shows that potential* EV drivers are even willing to pay more knowing they car will be charged faster.

These are some of the findings from the EVBox Mobility Monitor—EVBox’s annual market research report on electric vehicle adoption and barriers conducted alongside Ipsos. The research is supported by responses from 3,600 European citizens across six countries: the Netherlands, Germany, France, Belgium, Norway, and the UK.

Charging availability along the road and the time spent waiting until your car fully recharged remain two of of the top three main obstacles for European citizens to switch to electric driving. As of 2020, Europe* has almost 250,000 charging ports, a number which has quadrupled since 2015. The EVBox Mobility Monitor suggests those that already driving an EV are more aware of this figure, as their confidence in charging port availability doubles compared to non-EV drivers (49 percent vs. 25 percent). This figure rises to 60 percent of confident EV drivers in Germany, followed by British (55 percent) and Dutch (52 percent) EV drivers.

The Netherlands alone just passed 60,000 semi-public charging ports, and the EVBox Mobility Monitor’s results show that Dutch are the most confident about their nation’s charging infrastructure—almost half of EV drivers agree (47 percent). In other countries the views are still split.

Many EV drivers (64 percent) are familiar with the differences between regular and (ultra) fast charging. For reference:

·      Home charging: 1 hour of charge can add an additional range of up to 60km

·      Fast charging: 30 minutes of charge can add an additional range of up to 250km

·      Ultra-fast charging (350 kW): 15 minutes charge can add an additional range of up to 400km

Knowing this, 43 percent of current and potential EV drivers who are considering buying an electric car (again), confirmed that they would be willing to pay more for fast charging—knowing they car will be charged faster at a public charging station, versus 24 percent who are not willing to pay more for this.  

When looking at the usage of fast charging, it becomes clear that there aren’t many drivers that use fast charging on a regular basis (yet). Only 21 percent of EV drivers use a fast charger more than 5 times a month. This can be expected, as the majority of charging sessions happen at home (73 percent) or at the workplace (40 percent), and fast charging is most needed with travels that are different from the daily commute. Currently, most EV drivers fast charge at service stops and fuel stations along highways (55 percent), retail locations (48 percent) and at public parking locations in cities (47 percent).

Current EV drivers expect (ultra) fast chargers to provide them with all the features necessary to make the charging experience as easy as possible. For example, one in four (25 percent) found a good cable management system as most useful. The top three most requested features are: charging indicators (40 percent) that show the station’s status/availability from a distance, interactive touchscreens (34 percent) and good illumination (28 percent).  

Are you interested to read the country specific press releases of the EVBox Mobility Monitor? Click on the links for France, the Netherlands, Germany, Norway, Belgium, and the UK.

Footnotes:

* Normal and fast charging explained: at home someone can add on average up to 60 km in 1 hour to their car’s range, with fast charging around 250 km in 30 minutes, and ultra-fast charging (up to 350kW) as much as 400 km in 15 minutes—depending on type of car, charger etc. Learn about the difference between AC and DC charging here.

This market research was executed by Ipsos at the request of EVBox. The survey was undertaken in six European countries (Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, and the UK) and 3,600 citizens—including 600 EV drivers.

EV drivers constitute hybrid, PHEV, and BEV drivers.

*Potential EV drivers are respondents who indicated they would either definitely or most likely invest in an EV when considering the purchase of their next car.

For more information regarding specific numbers, feel free to reach out to Madeline Vidak (PR & Communications at EVBox).

Want to learn more about the future of sustainable mobility? Download the full report of the EVBox Mobility Monitor here.