East Kilbride crowned 'best place to own an electric car' in Scotland and tenth best in the UK

A South Lanarkshire town has been named the best place to own an electric car in Scotland, a new study has shown.

East Kilbride’s 148 public electric chargers and 855 privately-registered Ultra-Low Emission Vehicles (ULEVs) also make it tenth-best in the whole UK.

Scotland was found to have the greatest car adoption rate in the entire UK with the number of electric cars on the road increasing by 132%.

The research, commissioned by car manufacturer MINI, aimed to pinpoint where in the UK has the best infrastructure in place to meet the growing demand for electric vehicles (EVs).

ULEV ownership in East Kilbride is also predicted to grow by 33% in 2022 to 1,176 privately registered vehicles, based on historic growth.

MINI also commissioned a survey of 1,152 young drivers to see if the eco-conscious generation is driving the demand for electric vehicles. Nearly half (47%) of those asked from Scotland said their next car purchase would be electric if there were no barriers to purchase.

Meanwhile, 49% said they’d feel confident in owning and maintaining an EV – but overall, only 3% of 18 to 30-year-olds in the UK currently own an electric car.

It also showed that the biggest barriers to ownership are cost and range.

Over half of respondents (57%) said they were worried about the cost of charging electric cars, and concern remains high for the range of mileage they currently provide (52%).

Two in five (43%) said that they are worried about the availability of public charging point devices and that EVs are simply too expensive to buy (41%).

Charge point availability is on the rise in the UK by an estimated 24% from 25,927 in 2021 to 32,122 in 2022.

Federico Izzo, director of MINI UK & Ireland, said: “It’s encouraging to see the overall findings of the Electric Progress Report are positive and show that the UK is making nationwide strides to support electric mobility and a greener future.

“MINI is committed to a more sustainable future and will be the first BMW Group brand to become fully electric by the early 2030s.”