As electric cars become ever more popular, the need to be able to charge them on trips grows in line with EV sales. Only a few years ago, having a few rapid charge points at a location was often enough to cope with demand. However, as sales of EVs have accelerated, queues are not unheard of at certain strategic sites.
To help combat this, EV charging hubs are being rolled out across the UK. These see a large number of charge points installed in one location, aiming to deal with demand and any inoperable chargers, while keeping waiting drivers to a minimum.
There is no set number of chargers to qualify as a hub, and the number of charge points can be a mixture of fast, rapid, or high-power chargers, or just one type. These chargers can be found on the YourParkingSpace app, as well as on the networks’ own apps, or other EV charge point mapping services.
Although not a comprehensive list, the below highlights many of the most important sites in the UK, focusing on rapid and high-power charge points, though not exclusively. Some locations are run by a single network, and others a variety of operators.
Charging terminology used below includes “Fast” chargers - 7-22 kW AC - able to charge a car in a few hours, “Rapid” chargers - 50-99 kW DC - able to charge a car in 30-50 minutes, and “High-Power” chargers (HPC)- 100+ kW DC - capable of charging a car in less than 20 minutes.
Gridserve
Gridserve is one of the most important public charging networks in the country, having taken over control of the Electric Highway network that was amongst the first to install rapid chargers at motorway services across the UK.
It has invested heavily in replacing what had increasingly become old and unreliable units, upgrading them to newer points, and often faster chargers too. This initial work has been completed, and expansion plans are well under way, with Gridserve creating a number of “Electric Superhubs” at motorway service stations.
On top of this work, Gridserve is also rolling out its “Electric Forecourts”, stand-alone hubs that pack in a large number of charge points, and also provide facilities such as a waiting area, office pods, a coffee shop, and shops such as M&S Food and WHSmiths. There are already Forecourts at Braintree and Norwich in East Anglia, and work on one near Gatwick Airport is already underway.
Notable Gridserve charging hubs include:
- Braintree Electric Forecourt - 12x HPC DC 350 kW / 11x HPC 100 kW DC / 1x 50 Rapid 50 kW DC / 6x Fast 11-22 kW AC & 6x Tesla Supercharger HPC 250 kW DC
- Norwich Electric Forecourt - 22x HPC DC 350 kW / 6x Fast 22 kW AC & 8x Tesla Supercharger HPC 250 kW DC
- Exeter Superhub - 17 charge points - 12x HPC 350 kW DC / 3x Rapid 50 kW DC / 2x Fast 22 kW AC
- Swansea Superhub - 11 charge points - 6x HPC 350 kW DC / 3x Rapid 50 kW DC / 2x Fast 22 kW AC
- Thurrock Superhub - 14 charge points - 12x HPC 350 kW DC / 2x Fast 22 kW AC
- Rugby Superhub - 24 charge points - 12x HPC 350 kW DC & 12x Tesla Supercharger HPC 250 kW DC
- Wetherby Superhub - 12x HPC 350 kW DC / 3x Rapid 50 kW DC / 2x Fast 22 kW AC
Instavolt
An early advocate for easy-access rapid chargers, Instavolt charge points don’t need an app or RFID card to use them. Although drivers can opt to control the charger with an app, all units have contactless bank card access, which although not the only operator to bring this in, Instavolt was certainly an early adopter.
With a large number of rapid and high-power chargers across the country, Instavolt has grown often. By having two or four units at any one location. A couple of years ago, it opened its first charging hub just off the M40 at Banbury, which has proven so popular that the site was recently doubled in capacity.
Notable Instavolt charging hubs include:
- Banbury - 16 charge points - 8x HPC 150 kW DC / 8x HPC 125 kW DC
- Rhug Estate - 8 charge points - 8x HPC 120 kW DC
BP Pulse
The BP Pulse network benefitted from being an early entrant into the UK’s public EV charging market, after the oil company bought Chargemaster, which had in turn acquired Charge Your Car. This instantly gave BP a large and varied public charging network nationwide.
Now focused on putting chargers into BP garages and strategic locations, the network remains a broad mix of fast, rapid, and high-powered chargers.
Notable BP Pulse charging hubs include:
- Milton Keynes - 15 charge points - 8x Rapid 50 kW DC / 3x Fast 7 kW AC & 4x Ionity HPC 350 kW DC
- Gatwick - 7 charge points - 3x HPC 150 kW DC / 4x Rapid 50 kW DC
Shell Recharge
Another oil giant getting into the EV charging game, Shell has also kicked things off with buying existing networks - NewMotion and Ubitricity - though when these had far less of a presence in the UK than BP’s Chargemaster acquisition.
As such, Shell Recharge has been established as a rapid-only network, based at Shell forecourts, leaving NewMotion as a general public/commercial network, and Ubitricity a specialist in on-street residential charging.
Shell is adding high power chargers to various existing forecourts, and has even ripped one petrol station out and replaced it as an EV charging hub.
Notable Shell Recharge charging hubs include:
- Fulham - 10 charge points - 10 HPC 150 kW DC
Osprey
Similar in concept to Instavolt, Osprey is a rapid charger-only network with a focus on easy access. Again, an app or RFID card can be used, but the initial premise was to make contactless bank card access built in from the outset.
A variety of rapid and high power chargers have been installed across the UK, often in twos or fours, but the next stage of expansion is focused on charging hubs. Already, there have been hubs opened in the midlands, and more are planned for the south west. Osprey is also a leader in accessible charge points, with the most recent hub conforming to British Standards for disabled access.
Notable Osprey charging hubs include:
- Banbury Cross - 18 charge points - 6 HPC 150 kW DC & 12x Tesla Supercharger HPC 250 kW DC
- Brackley - 10 charge points - 8x HPC 150 kW DC / 2x Rapid 50 kW DC
Motor Fuels Group (MFG)
A major operator of service and filling stations across the UK, MFG has started offering compact EV charging hubs at a number of sites, and should be praised for rolling-out significant numbers of chargers at a large number of locations very quickly.
Locations already have facilities required for fuel filling, so there is a shop to pick up food or drink, and the points tend to be covered and clearly separated to make sure EVs don’t get in the way and vice versa.
Notable MFG charging hubs include:
- Filton - 8 charge points - 8x HPC 150 kW DC
- Barton Mills - 8 charge points - 8x HPC 150 kW DC
- Birmingham New John Street - 8 charge points - 8x HPC 150 kW DC
- Barnetby - 8 charge points - 8x HPC 150 kW DC
- Whirlwind - 8 charge points - 8x HPC 150 kW DC
- Crow Orchard - 8 charge points - 8x HPC 150 kW DC
- Oakwood Gate - 8 charge points - 8x HPC 150 kW DC
- Stratford - 8 charge points - 8x HPC 150 kW DC
- Hexagon - 8 charge points - 8x HPC 150 kW DC
- Robin Hood North - 8 charge points - 8x HPC 150 kW DC
Ionity
Ionity is a pan-European network, designed specifically to make long, cross country EV trips easy. Created by car manufacturers, it is essentially a multi-brand rival to Tesla’s Supercharger network, though open to any driver with an EV that has a CCS socket.
With this brief, typically at least four high power chargers have been installed at every Ionity site, and these are practically all 350 kW units for the fastest possible charging speeds. When matched with the fastest charging cars on the road, this means a 10-80% charge will take 18 minutes, adding more than 200 miles of range.
Notable Ionity charging hubs include:
- Stafford - 6 charge points - 6x HPC 350 kW DC
- Darwen - 6 charge points - 6x HPC 350 kW DC
- Leeds - 6 charge points - 6x HPC 350 kW DC
- Peterborough - 6 charge points - 6x HPC 350 kW DC
- Cambridge - 6 charge points - 6x HPC 350 kW DC
- Baldock - 6 charge points - 6x HPC 350 kW DC
- Chippenham - 7 charge points - 7x HPC 350 kW DC
- Cullompton - 6 charge points - 6x HPC 350 kW DC
- Cobham - 6 charge points - 6x HPC 350 kW DC
- Beaconsfield - 6 charge points - 6x HPC 350 kW DC
Tesla Supercharger
Tesla was installing EV charging hubs before the concept was even named really. Now, there is a UK-wide network of large numbers of high power chargers, helping Tesla drivers cover large distances easily.
The network is gradually being opened up to drivers of other cars, but regardless of whether the site is currently Tesla-only or open, the majority are along main routes and see at least a dozen chargers installed.
Notable Tesla Supercharger charging hubs include:
- Bristol - 14 charge points - 12x HPC 250 kW DC / 2x HPC 150 kW DC
- Exeter - 12 charge points - 4x HPC 250 kW DC / 8x HPC 150 kW DC
- Amesbury - 16 charge points - 16x HPC 250 kW DC
- Winchester - 12 charge points - 12x HPC 250 kW DC
- Oxford Services - 16 charge points - 16x HPC 150 kW DC
- Park Royal - 16 charge points - 8x HPC 250 kW DC / 8x HPC 150 kW DC
- South Mimms - 12 charge points - 12x HPC 150 kW DC
- Greenwich - 12 charge points - 12x HPC 150 kW DC
- Canary Wharf - 12 charge points - 8x HPC 250 kW DC / 4x HPC 150 kW DC
- Colchester - 12 charge points - 12x HPC 150 kW DC
- Cambridge - 12 charge points - 12x HPC 250 kW DC
- Birchanger Green - 16 charge points - 16x HPC 250 kW DC
- Grantham - 16 charge points - 16x HPC 150 kW DC
- Trafford Centre - 18 charge points - 18x HPC 250 kW DC
Local authorities
Some councils have committed to installing charge points at key locations within a county or city/town. These typically are run by a network operator, and may include multiple charge point types and/or networks in a single site.
Notable local authority charging hubs include:
- Oxford Redbridge P&R - 37 charge points - 5x Fastned HPC 300 kW DC / 12x Tesla Supercharger HPC 250 kW DC / 5x Wenea Fast 22 kW AC
- Falkirk - 10 charge points - 5x ChargePlace Scotland Rapid 50 kW DC / 5x ChargePlace Scotland Fast 22 kW AC
- Dundee - 9 charge points - 6x ChargePlace Scotland Rapid 50 kW DC / 3x ChargePlace Scotland Fast 22 kW AC
- York Poppleton - 8 charge points - 4x HPC 150 kW DC / 4x Rapid 50 kW DC
