More than one in twenty car miles in the UK is now driven by a zero-emission car, according to the RAC Foundation.
Analysis by the foundation discovered that by the end of 2024 zero-emission cars – mostly battery-electric vehicles (BEV) – comprised 3.8% of the national car fleet and undertook 5.3% of all car mileage.
In fact, the total percentage of zero-emission mileage was higher when the distance covered by hybrid cars was additionally factored into the figures.
The research contributes to the RAC Foundations’ Green Fleet Index, which tracks progress towards the minimum proportion (37%) of zero tailpipe emission car mileage necessary by 2030 to meet carbon reduction targets from cars – without the need to reduce mileage.
Its analysis also revealed that BEVs now cover similar mileage to diesel vehicles – supposedly the workhorses of the trade – in their early years of usage. In 2024, it is estimated that BEVs less than three years old were driven an average of 10,054 miles. This compares with an average of 10,728 miles for diesels less than three years old.
Data was taken from MOT tests on vehicles, which also revealed plug-in hybrids under three years old average around 9,367 miles a year, and new petrol vehicles were on 7,585.
| Estimated average annual mileages for cars less than three years old | |||||
| Year | Petrol | Diesel | Plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) | Battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) | All |
| 2024 | 7,585 | 10,728 | 9,367 | 10,054 | 8,460 |
| 2023 | 7,005 | 9,903 | 8,943 | 9,032 | 7,740 |
| 2022 | 6,496 | 9,635 | 9,202 | 8,588 | 7,372 |
| 2021 | 6,603 | 9,934 | 9,768 | 8,207 | 7,475 |
| 2020 | 6,994 | 10,982 | 10,626 | 9,035 | 8,066 |
| 2019 | 7,170 | 11,451 | 11,608 | 8,868 | 8,413 |
| 2018 | 7,175 | 11,577 | 11,497 | 7,856 | 8,665 |
| 2017 | 7,204 | 11,690 | 11,477 | 7,425 | 9,147 |
| 2016 | 7,286 | 11,795 | 11,057 | 7,350 | 9,477 |
| 2015 | 7,267 | 12,107 | 11,257 | 5,966 | 9,648 |
Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, said:
“Until recently new car buyers, often fleets and businesses, have looked to diesels when they’ve needed something capable of racking up the big miles whilst still offering reasonable fuel economy. Now it seems that fully electric cars are starting to take over where the diesel left off, providing a practical alternative in terms of range and cost per mile, and because of the attractive tax breaks they come with.
“The world where many saw the electric vehicle as being a second-car option, handy only for short trips, is changing rapidly to one where the battery-electric car is being bought to be a workhorse, adopted by fleet buyers and used by those whose jobs see them driving far further each year than the average motorist.
“Given this shift in buying patterns, the fact that new cars generally have tended to run up more miles than older ones and that most electric cars on the road are relatively young, it might not be so surprising that our analysis shows battery-powered vehicles account for a disproportionately large number of miles in use. That’s good news for helping us meet our carbon reduction targets in a week when the Government has also reinstated grants to make new electric models more affordable.”
Image from Shutterstock
