Plans for more than 60,000 new charging sockets across England are gathering pace, potentially making it easier for millions of motorists without driveways to switch to electric cars. The expansion comes as research reveals that half of UK councils still lack on-street charging provision for residents without driveways, leaving millions of households facing a significant barrier to going electric.
Council-backed projects awarded
British charging firm char.gy has been awarded 11 council-backed projects aimed at tackling the problem, with four contracts already signed and installations underway. Work is progressing in Brighton and Hove, Reading, Devon and Torbay, and West Northamptonshire, while seven further projects, including the Isle of Wight and Central Bedfordshire, are moving towards final contract signatures.
More than 650 charging sockets are already live under the programme, with tens of thousands more planned over the lifetime of the projects. The expansion could be particularly welcome news for the 40% of drivers who live in properties without off-street parking, making access to affordable public charging essential.
Addressing regional imbalance
Despite Britain's rapidly growing charging network, more than 70% of kerbside chargers installed across the country by the end of 2025 were concentrated in London. The government-backed Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) programme is designed to address that imbalance by helping councils bring charging to residential streets.
Char.gy says it has already delivered roughly twice as many LEVI charging sockets as its nearest competitor, based on its analysis of Zapmap data. The company has also reached a major milestone, installing its 6,000th charge point, adding 1,000 in less than six months.
Upgrades and network growth
Alongside its expansion, char.gy is replacing ageing charging infrastructure, having already upgraded 955 charge points in Richmond and Wandsworth, with further replacement work underway in Barnet and Brighton and Hove.
John Lewis, CEO of char.gy, said: "Councils are choosing char.gy because we turn LEVI projects into working charge points at pace and keep them working."
"6,000 charge points in, we are installing faster than ever, and the seven further councils we are working with towards signature mean that pace will keep growing."
The company says its network delivers more than 99% availability and has offered the cheapest on-street EV tariff for four consecutive years.
The wider UK public charging network has now grown to more than 122,000 charge points, with over 50,000 added since the end of 2023. More than half of new public chargers installed during 2025 were on-street units, reflecting growing efforts to make electric driving accessible beyond households with private driveways.
With 2.18 million electric vehicles already on Britain's roads, the latest expansion could help tackle one of the biggest remaining obstacles to EV ownership: where to charge when you don't have a driveway.
