All-electric service station opens

The world’s first all-electric forecourt has opened for business in the UK and has room for 36 electric vehicles (EVs) to recharge their batteries at the same time.

Using the service station’s ultra-fast chargers, it takes motorists 20 minutes to add about 320km of range to their cars.

The £10 million (NZ$19m) facility in Braintree, Essex, is owned by Gridserve and is powered by 100 per cent renewable energy.

The site is one of 100 the company plans to open across the UK in the next five years, with solar farms due to be built alongside many of the forecourts to supply the electricity. 

To keep drivers occupied while they wait for their EVs to recharge there is a coffee bar, shops, and exercise bikes that generate electricity when pedalled.

Toddington Harper, managing director, says he wants the service to be as simple as stopping at a regular fuel filling station.

“Our forecourts will make it easier and cheaper to charge an electric vehicle than to fuel a petrol or diesel alternative,” he explains.

“Charging has to be simple and free of anxiety, which is why we’ve designed our electric forecourts entirely around the needs of drivers.

“We are updating the traditional petrol station model, delivering the confidence people need to make the switch to electric transport today.”

The development, which opened in December 2020, comes soon after the UK government announced a ban on all new petrol and diesel cars from 2030.

Currently, there are 164,100 EVs among the 32m vehicles on UK roads.