Growing number of electric cars on Fife’s roads

Over 2018, the number of registered plug-in vehicles in the area increased by 34%.

The latest Department for Transport statistics show the number of registered electric or plug-in hybrid cars, vans and micro-cars called quadricycles in Fife.

At the end of 2017 there were 444 electric vehicles.

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By December last year, that figure had grown to 597, a jump of 153.

That’s lower than the increase of 1,762 in Peterborough, which has the highest percentage of plug-in vehicles of any local authority in the United Kingdom.

But back in 2013, in Fife, there were just 51 electric cars, which shows the progress the industry has made in a short time.

Over the past few years manufacturers have increased the range of their vehicles, and prices have fallen, helping fuel the rise in environmentally friendly vehicles.

The latest Nissan Leaf, the UK’s most popular entirely electric car, can now travel 235 miles before it needs to be recharged, 80 miles more than the previous version.

Over the next year BP will install charging points at its petrol stations, following Shell’s roll-out in 2017. Dyson has also said it plans to release an electric car by 2020.

One advantage electric car users have over other vehicles is that they do not have to pay road tax, as they do not release any emissions.

Electricity is also far cheaper than petrol and diesel, and green drivers have the satisfaction of helping save the planet.

However, in November, the Government reduced the maximum discount electric car buyers could get from £4,500 to £3,500.

Plug-in vehicles still make up a tiny percentage of the cars on the road in Fife: there are 597 electric cars, and 210,554 vehicles in total.