East of England · County

Cambridgeshire motoring statistics

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

Last updated
Records analysed
455,859 licensed vehicles in Cambridgeshire
Methodology
View methodology
  • Licensed cars 369,027 +1.0% on a year earlier
  • Private cars per 1,000 people 493 UK 444
  • Battery electric cars 17,868 4.8% of cars (UK 5.8%)
  • Electric share of private cars 4.1% UK 3.1%
  • Public chargers 1,293 182 per 100,000 people (UK 175)
  • Company-registered cars 5.2% UK 10.0%

How many cars are there in Cambridgeshire?

There were 369,027 licensed cars in Cambridgeshire at the end of June 2026, and 455,859 licensed vehicles of all kinds. That is 18.9% more cars than in 2010. Privately kept cars work out at 493 for every 1,000 residents (UK 444).

Licensed vehicles in Cambridgeshire

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

Licensed cars and vehicles in Cambridgeshire at the end of March each year
Year All vehiclesCars
2010 377,527310,449
2011 381,047313,622
2012 384,059316,509
2013 389,610321,204
2014 397,239326,909
2015 400,924329,954
2016 411,013335,925
2017 418,447340,711
2018 422,029342,014
2019 428,995346,708
2020 425,030344,750
2021 434,231349,539
2022 437,245351,817
2023 442,472355,891
2024 448,840361,324
2025 453,174365,213
2026 455,859369,027

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, Cambridgeshire compared
Year CambridgeshireEast of EnglandUnited Kingdom
2011 504503–
2012 503502–
2013 506505–
2014 508524–
2015 507529473
2016 511537480
2017 515544488
2018 514542490
2019 519541493
2020 514536489
2021 514539493
2022 510532489
2023 508529489
2024 509531490

Source:ONS Mid-2024 Updated

Petrol, diesel and electric cars in Cambridgeshire

52.4% of cars in Cambridgeshire run on petrol and 31.8% on diesel. Diesel’s share peaked at 40.6% in 2018. Hybrids that do not plug in make up 7.9%, and cars that plug in 7.5%.

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 Cambridgeshire, end of March each year
Year PetrolDieselHybridBattery electricPlug-in hybrid
2010 69.9%29.7%0.2%0.0%0.0%
2011 67.9%31.6%0.3%0.0%0.0%
2012 65.6%33.8%0.3%0.0%0.0%
2013 63.7%35.7%0.4%0.0%0.0%
2014 61.9%37.4%0.5%0.0%0.0%
2015 60.5%38.6%0.5%0.0%0.1%
2016 59.0%40.0%0.6%0.1%0.1%
2017 58.2%40.5%0.8%0.1%0.2%
2018 57.8%40.6%1.0%0.2%0.3%
2019 57.6%40.4%1.3%0.3%0.3%
2020 57.4%40.1%1.6%0.4%0.5%
2021 57.0%39.3%2.2%0.7%0.7%
2022 56.3%38.4%2.9%1.2%1.0%
2023 55.7%37.1%3.7%1.8%1.3%
2024 54.9%35.6%5.0%2.5%1.6%
2025 53.7%33.9%6.4%3.5%2.1%
2026 52.4%31.8%7.9%4.8%2.6%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of June 2026 Updated

Electric cars in Cambridgeshire

17,868 battery electric cars were licensed in Cambridgeshire at the end of June 2026, 4.8% of all cars. With plug-in hybrids, 27,566 cars plug in. A year earlier there were 12,805.

Of the privately kept cars, which are registered at home addresses, 4.1% are battery electric (14,368 cars). Companies keep 19.6% of the area’s battery electric cars, against 5.2% of its cars overall. There are also 585 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, Cambridgeshire compared, end of March each year
Year CambridgeshireEast of EnglandUnited Kingdom
2016 0.1%0.1%0.1%
2017 0.1%0.2%0.1%
2018 0.2%0.2%0.1%
2019 0.3%0.2%0.2%
2020 0.4%0.4%0.4%
2021 0.7%0.8%0.8%
2022 1.2%1.2%1.5%
2023 1.8%1.9%2.3%
2024 2.5%2.9%3.2%
2025 3.5%4.1%4.4%
2026 4.8%5.6%5.8%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of June 2026 Updated

Public EV chargers in Cambridgeshire

There were 1,293 public chargers in Cambridgeshire on 1 July 2026, 415 of them rapid or ultra-rapid (50kW and above). That is 182 for every 100,000 residents, against 175 across the UK. The count rose 11.1% from 1 January 2026.

For every public charger there are 16.9 privately kept plug-in cars in Cambridgeshire (UK 12.9). A higher number means more competition for each public charger, though many drivers charge at home.

Public chargers

Public EV chargers in Cambridgeshire by date
Date All public chargers50kW and above
Jan 2026 1,164351
Apr 2026 1,267403
Jul 2026 1,293415

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Chargers per 100,000 residents

Public chargers per 100,000 residents, Cambridgeshire compared
Area All chargers50kW and above
Cambridgeshire 18258
East of England 15049
England 17341
UK 17542

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Road traffic and collisions in Cambridgeshire

Vehicles travelled an estimated 5,289 million miles on roads in Cambridgeshire in 2025.

Traffic on all roads

Million vehicle miles a year on roads in Cambridgeshire
Year Million vehicle miles
1993 3,524
1994 3,617
1995 3,690
1996 3,829
1997 3,962
1998 4,024
1999 4,116
2000 4,124
2001 4,195
2002 4,245
2003 4,310
2004 4,389
2005 4,389
2006 4,423
2007 4,565
2008 4,589
2009 4,505
2010 4,439
2011 4,460
2012 4,427
2013 4,474
2014 4,600
2015 4,746
2016 4,865
2017 5,021
2018 4,978
2019 4,973
2020 3,991
2021 4,457
2022 5,013
2023 5,108
2024 5,248
2025 5,289

Source:DfT 1993 to 2025 Updated

Reported injury collisions

Police-reported injury collisions in Cambridgeshire, 2021 to 2025
Year CollisionsKilled or seriously injured
2021 1,010303
2022 1,093329
2023 1,150302
2024 1,036273
2025 1,017311

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

More road safety figures

Petrol and diesel prices in Cambridgeshire

Unleaded petrol averages 172.1p a litre across 62 filling stations in Cambridgeshire, 0.6p above the UK average. Diesel averages 199.8p, 1.1p above the UK average. Prices checked 31 Oct, 19:32.

How Cambridgeshire compares

Cambridgeshire compared with the East of England, England, the UK
Cambridgeshire 493 4.8% 4.1% 5.2% 182 16.9
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 Cambridgeshire

There is 1 DVSA car practical test centre in Cambridgeshire, and the highest pass rate in 2025/26 was 53.8% at Cambridge (Brookmount Court).

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 Cambridgeshire

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

Councils in Cambridgeshire
South Cambridgeshire 547 5.9% 5.4% 3.5% 205 21.3
Cambridge 270 5.0% 4.4% 3.8% 313 5.8
Huntingdonshire 549 5.0% 3.8% 8.3% 175 18.6
East Cambridgeshire 567 4.3% 3.9% 3.7% 90 36.5
Fenland 539 2.9% 2.4% 4.3% 53 38.6

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 455,859 licensed vehicles in Cambridgeshire 26 October 2026
Plug-in and electric vehicles Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport End of June 2026 28,495 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
  • Coverage: licensing and charger figures cover the whole UK. Licensing figures in Cambridgeshire 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.

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.