Two million-plus charging sessions on public network each month

More than two million electric vehicle (EV) charging sessions are now taking place on the public network each month, according to new utilisation data from Zapmap.

Almost three-in-five of these charging sessions use rapid/ultra-rapid chargers, which have a power rating of 50kW-plus.

By collating and analysing status data provided by charge point operators (CPOs) for each charge point in their network via the Open Charge Point Interface (OCPI), Zapmap  tracks the time each UK public charge point spends in use. 

Zapmap utilisation data shows that the busiest day for the public charging network in 2024 fell on December 23, which saw 104,215 charging events, while the quietest day for the network was December 25, with 33,250 charges. 

The peak summer travel day, with 66,621 charging events, fell on August 2, the first Friday after the majority of schools in England broke up for the summer holidays. 

A thorough understanding of utilisation rates can be used by CPOs and other industry players to enhance strategic planning, improve operational efficiency and optimise the customer experience, says Zapmap.

Gridserve’s Exeter charging hub is consistently the busiest charging site in the country. With the number of sessions per day in the hundreds across the site as a whole during June–August 2023, the CPO was able to respond to growing demand, increasing devices from 12 to 36 High Power chargers. 

Jade Edwards, head of insights at Zapmap, said: “As increasing numbers of drivers transition to electric vehicles and more investment is made into the charging infrastructure, tracking utilisation to fully understand usage patterns will not only ensure that CPOs optimise the customer experience but also enable them to progress towards profitable businesses.”