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New Forest motoring statistics

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

Last updated
Records analysed
140,557 licensed vehicles in New Forest
Methodology
View methodology
  • Licensed cars 110,295 +0.5% on a year earlier
  • Private cars per 1,000 people 606 UK 444
  • Battery electric cars 3,968 3.6% of cars (UK 5.8%)
  • Electric share of private cars 3.1% 172nd highest of 361 councils
  • Public chargers 311 177 per 100,000 people (UK 175)
  • Company-registered cars 3.3% UK 10.0%

How many cars are there in the New Forest?

There were 110,295 licensed cars in the New Forest at the end of June 2026, and 140,557 licensed vehicles of all kinds. That is 7.8% more cars than in 2010. Privately kept cars work out at 606 for every 1,000 residents, 3rd highest of 361 councils (UK 444).

Licensed vehicles in the New Forest

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

Licensed cars and vehicles in the New Forest at the end of March each year
Year All vehiclesCars
2010 124,880102,351
2011 125,480102,688
2012 126,430103,191
2013 127,480104,091
2014 129,611105,765
2015 130,281106,149
2016 132,034107,571
2017 134,266108,919
2018 134,758109,208
2019 136,196109,788
2020 134,179108,399
2021 137,027109,554
2022 138,030109,658
2023 138,661109,683
2024 139,572109,975
2025 139,650109,777
2026 140,557110,295

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, the New Forest compared
Year New ForestSouth EastUnited Kingdom
2011 581534–
2012 583535–
2013 587541–
2014 595547–
2015 597551473
2016 605559480
2017 613567488
2018 615570490
2019 620572493
2020 616561489
2021 622564493
2022 623565489
2023 624567489
2024 624570490

Source:ONS Mid-2024 Updated

Petrol, diesel and electric cars in the New Forest

58.2% of cars in the New Forest run on petrol and 28.8% on diesel. Diesel’s share peaked at 35.3% in 2017. Hybrids that do not plug in make up 6.9%, and cars that plug in 5.7%.

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 the New Forest, end of March each year
Year PetrolDieselHybridBattery electricPlug-in hybrid
2010 73.6%26.1%0.2%0.0%0.0%
2011 71.9%27.7%0.3%0.0%0.0%
2012 70.2%29.3%0.3%0.0%0.0%
2013 68.6%30.9%0.4%0.0%0.0%
2014 66.8%32.6%0.4%0.0%0.0%
2015 65.3%33.9%0.5%0.0%0.0%
2016 64.1%35.0%0.6%0.1%0.1%
2017 63.7%35.3%0.7%0.1%0.1%
2018 63.6%35.2%0.8%0.2%0.2%
2019 63.7%34.8%1.0%0.2%0.3%
2020 63.3%34.7%1.2%0.3%0.3%
2021 62.8%34.3%1.7%0.6%0.5%
2022 62.0%33.6%2.4%1.0%0.7%
2023 61.1%33.1%3.2%1.4%0.9%
2024 60.3%32.1%4.3%1.9%1.2%
2025 59.4%30.6%5.5%2.6%1.6%
2026 58.2%28.8%6.9%3.6%2.1%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of June 2026 Updated

Electric cars in the New Forest

3,968 battery electric cars were licensed in the New Forest at the end of June 2026, 3.6% of all cars, 153rd lowest of 361 councils. With plug-in hybrids, 6,232 cars plug in. A year earlier there were 2,865.

Of the privately kept cars, which are registered at home addresses, 3.1% are battery electric (3,291 cars), 27th lowest of 64 councils in the South East. Companies keep 17.1% of the area’s battery electric cars, against 3.3% of its cars overall. There are also 209 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, the New Forest compared, end of March each year
Year New ForestSouth EastUnited Kingdom
2016 0.1%0.1%0.1%
2017 0.1%0.1%0.1%
2018 0.2%0.2%0.1%
2019 0.2%0.3%0.2%
2020 0.3%0.5%0.4%
2021 0.6%1.1%0.8%
2022 1.0%2.2%1.5%
2023 1.4%3.3%2.3%
2024 1.9%4.5%3.2%
2025 2.6%6.4%4.4%
2026 3.6%9.3%5.8%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of June 2026 Updated

Public EV chargers in the New Forest

There were 311 public chargers in the New Forest on 1 July 2026, 118 of them rapid or ultra-rapid (50kW and above). That is 177 for every 100,000 residents, 117th highest of 361 councils, against 175 across the UK. The count rose 10.3% from 1 January 2026.

For every public charger there are 17.2 privately kept plug-in cars in the New Forest (UK 12.9), 178th fewest 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 the New Forest by date
Date All public chargers50kW and above
Jan 2026 28277
Apr 2026 28383
Jul 2026 311118

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Chargers per 100,000 residents

Public chargers per 100,000 residents, the New Forest compared
Area All chargers50kW and above
New Forest 17767
Hampshire 13450
South East 15940
England 17341
UK 17542

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Electric cars by neighbourhood

The New Forest has 23 ONS neighbourhoods (middle layer super output areas, about 7,000 residents each). In the typical one, 2.5% of privately kept vehicles are battery electric; in the highest, 3.8%. ONS names neighbourhoods by council and number, not by place name.

Neighbourhoods in the New Forest with the highest battery electric share of privately kept vehicles
Neighbourhood (MSOA) Private vehicles Battery electric Electric share Plug-in share
New Forest 023 6,100 230 3.8% 6.0%
New Forest 015 6,025 224 3.7% 6.4%
New Forest 006 4,846 149 3.1% 5.2%
New Forest 007 4,797 150 3.1% 5.4%
New Forest 017 6,284 196 3.1% 5.1%
New Forest 022 5,372 165 3.1% 5.0%
New Forest 009 5,281 153 2.9% 4.1%
New Forest 010 5,721 168 2.9% 4.5%
New Forest 016 5,856 169 2.9% 5.3%
New Forest 001 9,024 257 2.8% 4.5%
Lowest electric shares
New Forest 013 3,559 60 1.7% 3.1%
New Forest 002 3,709 66 1.8% 2.8%
New Forest 004 4,797 91 1.9% 2.9%
New Forest 021 5,069 102 2.0% 3.1%
New Forest 014 6,554 128 2.0% 3.2%

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

Road traffic and collisions in the New Forest

Reported injury collisions

Police-reported injury collisions in the New Forest, 2021 to 2025
Year CollisionsKilled or seriously injured
2021 30583
2022 30484
2023 31582
2024 32792
2025 33792

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

More road safety figures

Petrol and diesel prices in New Forest

Unleaded petrol averages 174.7p a litre across 18 filling stations in New Forest, 3.2p above the UK average. Diesel averages 200.7p, 2.0p above the UK average. Prices checked 31 Oct, 19:32.

Cheapest petrol

  1. Tesco Hythe Superstore Southampton 169.9p
  2. Texaco Hordle Garage Lymington 172.9p
  3. Texaco Ascona Hinton Service Station Hinton 173.9p

Every filling station and price in New Forest

How the New Forest compares

New Forest compared with Hampshire, the South East, England, the UK
New Forest 606 3.6% 3.1% 3.3% 177 17.2
Hampshire 551 4.4% 3.6% 14.0% 134 23.0
South East 499 9.3% 3.5% 18.5% 159 17.7
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 the New Forest

There is no DVSA car practical test centre in the New Forest. The nearest centres are elsewhere in Hampshire.

Centres in Hampshire:

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 Hampshire

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

Councils in Hampshire
Winchester 527 5.4% 4.7% 4.9% 213 17.7
Hart 599 5.2% 4.2% 4.2% 210 18.7
Eastleigh 544 4.7% 3.8% 4.6% 117 25.4
East Hampshire 600 4.6% 4.0% 3.3% 84 45.1
Rushmoor 482 4.6% 2.6% 66.2% 156 13.1
Test Valley 565 4.5% 3.9% 3.9% 118 28.3
Basingstoke and Deane 529 4.4% 3.9% 3.2% 141 22.4
Fareham 568 4.3% 3.7% 3.0% 62 52.0
New Forest 606 3.6% 3.1% 3.3% 177 17.2
Havant 510 3.5% 2.7% 4.8% 72 29.4
Gosport 475 2.7% 2.2% 3.3% 100 16.3

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 140,557 licensed vehicles in New Forest 26 October 2026
Plug-in and electric vehicles Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport End of June 2026 6,531 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 the New Forest 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.