PARTICIPANTS of an electric vehicle road trip passed through Warrington as they proved that ‘range anxiety’ is justifiable

Most Britons who took a staycation this summer travelled by car, but just six per cent planned to use an electric vehicle, a survey suggests, as energy firms re-double efforts to break down drivers’ range anxiety.

While drivers are aware that EVs are the ‘greener’ way to travel compared to petrol or diesel, more than a third worry the vehicle will not have enough battery charge to reach its destination.

Moreover, more than half have concerns about the lack of charging points, the poll for energy firm Ovo found.

A road trip by PA taking in some of England’s most remote and beautiful routes over the summer found that concerns about the variable extent and quality of roadside infrastructure remain justifiable – although significant improvements are underway.

The road trip in an all-electric SUV began en route to the Lake District and saw a first attempt at a top-up charge fail as it was so slow it would have had participants ready to go by 10.40am the next morning – almost a day later.

A second attempt at a BP Pulse charging station in Warrington was done within the time it took to have a leisurely coffee.

Severe flooding on the first night at a stop in Borrowdale closed roads out of the village and left the hotel’s guests travelling by EV reliant on a single double charging point in the car park.

One of the point’s chargers was out of use and the other had been commandeered overnight by a touring French couple, who wandered into the hotel’s lounge after 10am the next morning and responded to fellow guests’ irritation with a Gallic shrug.

An eventual opportunity allowed for a partial recharge while waiting for the roads to reopen – fortunately, as it turned out, as the nearest public charging point in Keswick appeared not to be working and would not accept payment.

However, the near full charge was easily enough for a 67-mile route out of the Lake District and across the Yorkshire Dales high roads to Askrigg.

A stop at the M6 Tebay services southbound the next day en route to the Peak District found 12 Tesla charging points, but a grand total of four for other makes of EVs.

Of these, two were not working, leaving a queue of disgruntled motorists. Tebay does offer 12 ultra-rapid charging points at its northbound services.

Ovo Energy acknowledged that there is more to be done to boost confidence in the system.

Director Alex Thwaites said: “We know interest in electric vehicles is growing. Our recent research shows that 85 per cent of drivers are interested in making the switch to EV in the next five years.

“One of the most common EV myths is that they cannot go far on a single charge, however recent stats show the average range for new vehicles is close to 300 miles, while the average range for all EVs is 236 miles, the equivalent of a return trip from London to Bristol.”

Mr Thwaites said his firm’s app attempted to provide drivers with ‘peace of mind’, with access to live updates and availability of chargers ‘so you can find charging points no matter what journey you are on’.