There are not enough public electric vehicle charging points to meet the demand of the growing numbers of such cars on the road Galway TD Seán Canney has said.
Figures from the Society of the Irish Motor Industry showed that electric vehicle sales exceeded those of diesel cars for the first time in the first three months of this year.
In the first three months of 2023, fully electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles made up 24% of all new cars sold in Ireland.
There were 16,000 electric vehicles sold in Ireland in 2022, and this figures is expected to increase to roughly 20,000 this year.
“It is imperative that the lack of public charging points is addressed as a matter of urgency,” Seán Canney said.
“More charging points are required right across the country and better incentives should be in place to help increase the number charging points in all towns and villages across the country”.
Drivers fear that they will not be able to charge their electric car battery with the same ease as filling up at the petrol pump, he added.
“Local authorities should be funded to put charging points in all public carparks. Small business premises, local shops and community groups should also be encouraged to install these charging points at their premises”.
