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Breckland motoring statistics

How many cars and electric cars are registered in Breckland, which fuels they use, how many public chargers there are and how Breckland compares with the East of England. From DVLA licensing records, DfT charger statistics and ONS population estimates.

Last updated
Records analysed
112,782 licensed vehicles in Breckland
Methodology
View methodology
  • Licensed cars 85,422 +1.3% on a year earlier
  • Private cars per 1,000 people 558 UK 444
  • Battery electric cars 2,871 3.4% of cars (UK 5.8%)
  • Electric share of private cars 2.7% 120th lowest of 361 councils
  • Public chargers 167 114 per 100,000 people (UK 175)
  • Company-registered cars 4.3% UK 10.0%

How many cars are there in Breckland?

There were 85,422 licensed cars in Breckland at the end of June 2026, and 112,782 licensed vehicles of all kinds. That is 23.8% more cars than in 2010. Privately kept cars work out at 558 for every 1,000 residents, 44th highest of 361 councils (UK 444).

Licensed vehicles in Breckland

Counts at the end of March each year, 2010 to 2026.

Licensed cars and vehicles in Breckland at the end of March each year
Year All vehiclesCars
2010 88,30668,984
2011 89,42569,924
2012 90,36570,961
2013 91,48271,825
2014 93,18573,247
2015 94,65574,324
2016 97,48076,481
2017 100,59078,446
2018 102,26778,997
2019 103,82779,870
2020 102,56379,318
2021 105,37880,596
2022 106,64681,309
2023 107,65281,846
2024 109,26182,912
2025 110,99184,334
2026 112,78285,422

Source:DfT / DVLA End of June 2026 Updated

Licensed vehicles by type

Source:DfT / DVLA End of June 2026 Updated

Cars per 1,000 residents

All licensed cars at the end of June, divided by the ONS mid-year population. Company fleets registered locally push this up.

Cars per 1,000 residents at mid-year, Breckland compared
Year BrecklandEast of EnglandUnited Kingdom
2011 534503–
2012 539502–
2013 540505–
2014 546524–
2015 548529473
2016 558537480
2017 566544488
2018 568542490
2019 573541493
2020 565536489
2021 567539493
2022 567532489
2023 565529489
2024 566531490

Source:ONS Mid-2024 Updated

Petrol, diesel and electric cars in Breckland

49.0% of cars in Breckland run on petrol and 39.5% on diesel. Diesel’s share peaked at 45.1% in 2020. Hybrids that do not plug in make up 6.2%, and cars that plug in 4.9%.

Cars by fuel type

Source:DfT / DVLA End of June 2026 Updated

Fuel mix over time

Share of licensed cars at the end of March each year.

Share of licensed cars by fuel type in Breckland, end of March each year
Year PetrolDieselHybridBattery electricPlug-in hybrid
2010 68.1%31.5%0.1%0.0%0.0%
2011 65.6%34.1%0.1%0.0%0.0%
2012 63.4%36.1%0.2%0.0%0.0%
2013 61.6%38.0%0.2%0.0%0.0%
2014 59.3%40.2%0.2%0.0%0.0%
2015 57.4%42.0%0.3%0.0%0.0%
2016 55.6%43.8%0.3%0.0%0.0%
2017 54.6%44.6%0.5%0.1%0.1%
2018 54.0%45.0%0.7%0.1%0.1%
2019 54.1%44.7%0.8%0.1%0.2%
2020 53.5%45.1%0.9%0.2%0.2%
2021 52.9%44.9%1.3%0.3%0.3%
2022 52.1%44.7%1.9%0.6%0.5%
2023 51.3%44.1%2.6%1.0%0.6%
2024 50.4%43.1%3.8%1.5%0.8%
2025 49.6%41.5%5.1%2.2%1.2%
2026 49.0%39.5%6.2%3.4%1.6%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of June 2026 Updated

Electric cars in Breckland

2,871 battery electric cars were licensed in Breckland at the end of June 2026, 3.4% of all cars, 129th lowest of 361 councils. With plug-in hybrids, 4,199 cars plug in. A year earlier there were 1,875.

Of the privately kept cars, which are registered at home addresses, 2.7% are battery electric (2,209 cars), 19th lowest of 45 councils in the East of England. Companies keep 23.1% of the area’s battery electric cars, against 4.3% of its cars overall. There are also 91 battery electric vans.

Battery electric share of licensed cars

End of March each year. Fleet re-registrations can move a single area’s line sharply.

Battery electric share of licensed cars, Breckland compared, end of March each year
Year BrecklandEast of EnglandUnited Kingdom
2016 0.0%0.1%0.1%
2017 0.1%0.2%0.1%
2018 0.1%0.2%0.1%
2019 0.1%0.2%0.2%
2020 0.2%0.4%0.4%
2021 0.3%0.8%0.8%
2022 0.6%1.2%1.5%
2023 1.0%1.9%2.3%
2024 1.5%2.9%3.2%
2025 2.2%4.1%4.4%
2026 3.4%5.6%5.8%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of June 2026 Updated

Public EV chargers in Breckland

There were 167 public chargers in Breckland on 1 July 2026, 62 of them rapid or ultra-rapid (50kW and above). That is 114 for every 100,000 residents, 118th lowest of 361 councils, against 175 across the UK. The count rose 1.8% from 1 January 2026.

For every public charger there are 20.2 privately kept plug-in cars in Breckland (UK 12.9), 133rd most of 361 councils. A higher number means more competition for each public charger, though many drivers charge at home.

Public chargers

Public EV chargers in Breckland by date
Date All public chargers50kW and above
Jan 2026 16460
Apr 2026 16458
Jul 2026 16762

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Chargers per 100,000 residents

Public chargers per 100,000 residents, Breckland compared
Area All chargers50kW and above
Breckland 11442
Norfolk 16241
East of England 15049
England 17341
UK 17542

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Electric cars by neighbourhood

Breckland has 17 ONS neighbourhoods (middle layer super output areas, about 7,000 residents each). In the typical one, 2.3% of privately kept vehicles are battery electric; in the highest, 3.2%. ONS names neighbourhoods by council and number, not by place name.

Neighbourhoods in Breckland with the highest battery electric share of privately kept vehicles
Neighbourhood (MSOA) Private vehicles Battery electric Electric share Plug-in share
Breckland 013 5,142 162 3.2% 4.5%
Breckland 006 6,013 172 2.9% 4.6%
Breckland 007 5,912 155 2.6% 3.8%
Breckland 010 7,854 206 2.6% 4.2%
Breckland 014 5,721 144 2.5% 3.7%
Breckland 001 6,000 142 2.4% 3.6%
Breckland 011 7,267 171 2.4% 3.6%
Breckland 002 7,499 171 2.3% 3.4%
Breckland 003 4,744 110 2.3% 3.5%
Breckland 008 5,799 136 2.3% 3.7%
Lowest electric shares
Breckland 015 2,670 22 0.8% 1.7%
Breckland 017 4,353 42 1.0% 1.9%
Breckland 016 6,141 118 1.9% 3.0%
Breckland 005 7,047 141 2.0% 3.0%
Breckland 012 5,959 123 2.1% 3.1%

Privately kept licensed vehicles of all types at the end of June 2026.

Road traffic and collisions in Breckland

Reported injury collisions

Police-reported injury collisions in Breckland, 2021 to 2025
Year CollisionsKilled or seriously injured
2021 23575
2022 22072
2023 19658
2024 26386
2025 29793

Source:DfT STATS19,UK Motoring analysis 2021 to 2025 Updated

More road safety figures

Petrol and diesel prices in Breckland

Unleaded petrol averages 174.0p a litre across 15 filling stations in Breckland, 2.5p above the UK average. Diesel averages 200.4p, 1.7p above the UK average. Prices checked 31 Oct, 19:32.

Cheapest petrol

  1. BP Karan Nun's Bridge Service Station England 168.9p
  2. Sainsbury's Thetford Thetford 168.9p
  3. BP Karan Breckland Service Station Brandon 171.9p

Every filling station and price in Breckland

How Breckland compares

Breckland compared with Norfolk, the East of England, England, the UK
Breckland 558 3.4% 2.7% 4.3% 114 20.2
Norfolk 522 3.3% 2.7% 4.2% 162 13.4
East of England 501 5.6% 3.2% 8.7% 150 17.3
England 440 6.2% 3.2% 10.7% 173 13.4
United Kingdom4445.8%3.1%10.0%17512.9

Private cars per 1,000 people use the ONS mid-2024 population. Chargers are counted at the latest date; plug-in cars at the end of June 2026.

Driving test centres in Breckland

There is no DVSA car practical test centre in Breckland. The nearest centres are elsewhere in Norfolk.

Centres in Norfolk:

DVSA publishes pass rates by centre name, with no address, so centres are placed here by the place name in the name DVSA uses. See pass rates at every test centre.

Councils in Norfolk

Sorted by battery electric share of cars. Select a column heading to sort by it.

Councils in Norfolk
South Norfolk 574 4.0% 3.5% 4.1% 131 22.3
Broadland 576 3.8% 3.2% 3.9% 116 23.8
Breckland 558 3.4% 2.7% 4.3% 114 20.2
King's Lynn and West Norfolk 540 3.2% 2.6% 4.1% 172 13.1
Norwich 351 3.0% 1.9% 5.7% 196 5.2
North Norfolk 575 2.8% 2.4% 3.5% 225 9.7
Great Yarmouth 472 2.4% 1.9% 4.7% 211 6.7

Data stories to read next

All insights

Data sources and methodology

Datasets used on this page
Figures Source Period Records Updated
Licensed vehicles Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport End of June 2026 112,782 licensed vehicles in Breckland 26 October 2026
Plug-in and electric vehicles Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport End of June 2026 4,408 plug-in vehicles 26 October 2026
Public chargers Electric vehicle public charging infrastructure statistics Department for Transport 1 July 2026 121,171 public chargers (UK) 26 October 2026
Population Mid-year population estimates Office for National Statistics Mid-2024 404 areas 26 October 2026
Neighbourhoods Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport End of June 2026 35,672 small areas (LSOAs) in England and Wales 26 October 2026
  • Coverage: licensing and charger figures cover the whole UK. Licensing figures in Breckland run from the end of 2009.
  • Vehicles are counted at the registered keeper’s postcode: for company cars that is the company’s address, not where the car is driven.
  • Battery electric and plug-in counts come from table VEH0142; petrol, diesel and hybrid counts from VEH0105. “Other fuels” is VEH0105’s other-fuel count less plug-in cars.
  • Charger counts are based on Zapmap data and are official statistics in development. In June 2026 one operator removed about 1,270 private chargers wrongly listed as public, so April and July are not strictly comparable.
  • Neighbourhood figures cover England and Wales only; Scottish data zones and Northern Irish super data zones cannot be placed in councils without lookups we do not hold.
How we calculate these figures All data sources

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.