Image: DfT
A Government survey has found that a significant majority of people believe battery electric vehicles are too expensive to buy – with many also having concerns about the lack of charging provision.
The National Travel Attitudes Study (NTAS) collected responses from 2,171 individuals who had previously participated in the National Travel Survey (NTS).
It found that while only 4% of respondents currently own or have use of a plug-in vehicle, 57% report that they are fairly likely or very likely to purchase or lease one in the future.
When it comes to the present, 80% believe that battery electric vehicles are too expensive to buy, while 59% say that there are not enough public electric vehicle chargepoints.
The Government is keen to encourage the UK to switch to electric vehicles. It is banning the sale of new petrol and diesel cars from 2030.
The survey shows 55% support or strongly support the UK Government’s action to increase the proportion of electric vehicles sold by manufacturers.
A majority (72%) believe that electric vehicles are ‘greener’ than petrol or diesel equivalents.
When asked about a range of factors that might encourage buying a low-emission car, the most popular factors were lower purchase cost (76%), lower running costs (75%) and convenience of recharging (67%).
More local chargepoints (58%) and environmental benefits (57%) were also popular factors.
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