Orkneys the best place to be with an EV… or perhaps Lamlash is

With two new connectors (and 4 car parking spaces) installed at the Ship House car park in Lamlash recently, this study by the International Drivers Association is quite interesting. With more (fast charging) points due to be installed at the Clockhouse car park at the Drift Inn, also Lamlash, perhaps North Ayrshire’s ranking of ninth worst place in Scotland for accessibility to a public EV charge point will improve. At least if you live in or are visiting Lamlash you’ll be one of the best places. With a population of around 1,100 and 4 new connectors, that is 1 connector for every 275 people. As the report says, there is still a long way to go, but it’s a great start for this village! 

The Orkney Islands are the best area in Scotland to own an electric car, a new study reveals

A new study has revealed that the Orkney Islands are the best area in Scotland to own an electric car. The study by International Drivers Association analysed the number of electric car charging points on ZapMap and ONS data to establish which local authority in Scotland has the highest number of charging points per 100,000 population.

The data found that the Orkney Islands are the area in Scotland with the highest number of charging points per 100,000 people, at 178.6. This comes as a result of 40 total charging points in the area and a population of 22,400 and makes the Orkney Islands the most accessible area in Scotland to own an electric car.

The second-best local authority in Scotland to own an electric vehicle is Stirling which has 126.5 charging points per 100,000 people. The area has a total of 119 charging points, significantly more than the Orkney Islands, but with a population of 94,080, this means that the area provides slightly less accessibility to charging points than the Orkney Islands.

East Lothian ranks as the third best area to own an electric vehicle in the UK. The local authority has 118.6 charging devices per 100,000 people as a result of 128 public charging devices and a population of 107,900. East Lothian also has the eighth highest number of charging points at 128, below areas such as Perth and Kinross and Dundee.

Taking the fourth spot is Na h-Eileanan Siar with 105.7 charging points per 100,000 and Argyll and Bute being the fifth best local authority to own an electric vehicle with 100.7 charging devices per 100,000 people.

The best area in the Scotland to own an electric car

The worst area in Scotland to own an electric car is revealed to be East Dunbartonshire, which has the lowest number of accessible charging points per population with only 23 per 100,000 available. With a total of 25 public charging devices across the area and a population of 108,750, Bolton is the area with the least access to charging points for electric vehicle owners.

East Renfrewshire is the second-worst Scottish area for owners of electric vehicles with a population of 96,060 and only 24 charging points across the area. This equates to 25 public charging devices per 100,000 – the second lowest number of all areas analysed.
The local authority of West Lothian has the third-worst rate of charging points for electric vehicle owners with only 25.6 charging points per 100,000. West Lothian has a population of 183,820 and 47 total public charging devices, ten of which are rapid chargers.

The worst area in the Scotland to own an electric car

A spokesperson for International Drivers Association commented on the findings: “Scotland’s charging infrastructure still has a way to go despite the many benefits that electric vehicles have to offer. It will be fascinating to see, particularly as fuel costs continue to rise, how the electrical charging landscape continues to evolve over the coming years.”

Article credit: International Drivers Association

ChargePlace Scotland is Scotland’s national Electric Vehicle (EV) charging network. They are owned and have been developed by the Scottish Government, and funded in partnership through a public grant from Local Authorities and other organisations.
They are aiming to make owning an EV accessible for all Scottish drivers with charge points located across Scotland – from Shetland to the Scottish borders. For more information about public EV charge points visit the ChargePlace Scotland website. It has a map of all the EV charge points across Scotland.

For more information and figures on the number of EV charge points in each local authority in Scotland click here for a FOI/EIR release, with figures taken from January 2022.