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Shropshire motoring statistics

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

Last updated
Records analysed
251,256 licensed vehicles in Shropshire
Methodology
View methodology
  • Licensed cars 189,118 +1.0% on a year earlier
  • Private cars per 1,000 people 541 UK 444
  • Battery electric cars 6,712 3.5% of cars (UK 5.8%)
  • Electric share of private cars 3.0% 174th lowest of 361 councils
  • Public chargers 515 155 per 100,000 people (UK 175)
  • Company-registered cars 4.9% UK 10.0%

How many cars are there in Shropshire?

There were 189,118 licensed cars in Shropshire at the end of June 2026, and 251,256 licensed vehicles of all kinds. That is 17.7% more cars than in 2010. Privately kept cars work out at 541 for every 1,000 residents, 80th highest of 361 councils (UK 444).

Licensed vehicles in Shropshire

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

Licensed cars and vehicles in Shropshire at the end of March each year
Year All vehiclesCars
2010 212,607160,722
2011 216,814161,962
2012 219,332162,913
2013 223,615164,782
2014 230,485167,580
2015 215,031167,131
2016 218,947169,540
2017 223,841172,850
2018 227,082174,864
2019 231,048177,767
2020 229,476176,987
2021 236,899180,951
2022 239,637181,785
2023 242,903183,375
2024 245,473185,526
2025 248,250187,174
2026 251,256189,118

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, Shropshire compared
Year ShropshireWest MidlandsUnited Kingdom
2011 527506–
2012 529502–
2013 535503–
2014 542500–
2015 538506473
2016 542513480
2017 548523488
2018 551524490
2019 556519493
2020 551515489
2021 557485493
2022 555480489
2023 556479489
2024 558476490

Source:ONS Mid-2024 Updated

Petrol, diesel and electric cars in Shropshire

51.4% of cars in Shropshire run on petrol and 35.5% on diesel. Diesel’s share peaked at 44.2% in 2018. Hybrids that do not plug in make up 6.9%, and cars that plug in 5.6%.

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 Shropshire, end of March each year
Year PetrolDieselHybridBattery electricPlug-in hybrid
2010 64.8%34.8%0.1%0.0%0.0%
2011 62.9%36.7%0.2%0.0%0.0%
2012 61.3%38.2%0.2%0.0%0.0%
2013 59.8%39.7%0.3%0.0%0.0%
2014 58.1%41.4%0.3%0.0%0.0%
2015 57.4%42.0%0.3%0.1%0.0%
2016 56.0%43.3%0.4%0.1%0.1%
2017 55.3%43.8%0.5%0.1%0.1%
2018 54.8%44.2%0.6%0.1%0.2%
2019 54.9%43.9%0.7%0.2%0.2%
2020 54.7%43.8%0.8%0.3%0.3%
2021 54.4%43.2%1.3%0.5%0.4%
2022 53.9%42.5%1.9%0.8%0.6%
2023 53.7%41.3%2.7%1.2%0.8%
2024 53.1%39.9%3.8%1.7%1.1%
2025 52.5%37.9%5.3%2.5%1.4%
2026 51.4%35.5%6.9%3.5%2.1%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of June 2026 Updated

Electric cars in Shropshire

6,712 battery electric cars were licensed in Shropshire at the end of June 2026, 3.5% of all cars, 142nd lowest of 361 councils. With plug-in hybrids, 10,626 cars plug in. A year earlier there were 4,593.

Of the privately kept cars, which are registered at home addresses, 3.0% are battery electric (5,385 cars), 15th highest of 30 councils in the West Midlands. Companies keep 19.8% of the area’s battery electric cars, against 4.9% of its cars overall. There are also 198 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, Shropshire compared, end of March each year
Year ShropshireWest MidlandsUnited Kingdom
2016 0.1%0.1%0.1%
2017 0.1%0.1%0.1%
2018 0.1%0.1%0.1%
2019 0.2%0.2%0.2%
2020 0.3%0.5%0.4%
2021 0.5%0.7%0.8%
2022 0.8%1.0%1.5%
2023 1.2%1.4%2.3%
2024 1.7%1.8%3.2%
2025 2.5%2.7%4.4%
2026 3.5%3.7%5.8%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of June 2026 Updated

Public EV chargers in Shropshire

There were 515 public chargers in Shropshire on 1 July 2026, 111 of them rapid or ultra-rapid (50kW and above). That is 155 for every 100,000 residents, 152nd highest of 361 councils, against 175 across the UK. The count fell 4.3% from 1 January 2026.

For every public charger there are 16.3 privately kept plug-in cars in Shropshire (UK 12.9), 167th 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 Shropshire by date
Date All public chargers50kW and above
Jan 2026 538112
Apr 2026 540112
Jul 2026 515111

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Chargers per 100,000 residents

Public chargers per 100,000 residents, Shropshire compared
Area All chargers50kW and above
Shropshire 15533
West Midlands 16446
England 17341
UK 17542

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Electric cars by neighbourhood

Shropshire has 39 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, 4.4%. ONS names neighbourhoods by council and number, not by place name.

Neighbourhoods in Shropshire with the highest battery electric share of privately kept vehicles
Neighbourhood (MSOA) Private vehicles Battery electric Electric share Plug-in share
Shropshire 025 6,611 289 4.4% 6.3%
Shropshire 021 4,309 155 3.6% 5.2%
Shropshire 020 6,367 216 3.4% 5.4%
Shropshire 027 4,124 138 3.3% 5.0%
Shropshire 032 4,221 134 3.2% 4.8%
Shropshire 002 6,994 216 3.1% 4.7%
Shropshire 022 4,234 132 3.1% 4.3%
Shropshire 023 5,580 168 3.0% 4.9%
Shropshire 031 3,640 108 3.0% 4.3%
Shropshire 029 8,235 242 2.9% 4.4%
Lowest electric shares
Shropshire 006 5,475 66 1.2% 2.2%
Shropshire 015 4,022 52 1.3% 2.1%
Shropshire 036 5,361 84 1.6% 2.6%
Shropshire 016 4,580 71 1.6% 2.9%
Shropshire 038 6,439 107 1.7% 2.9%

Privately kept licensed vehicles of all types at the end of June 2026. 1 neighbourhood is left out because DfT withholds small counts there.

Road traffic and collisions in Shropshire

Vehicles travelled an estimated 2,208 million miles on roads in Shropshire in 2025.

Traffic on all roads

Million vehicle miles a year on roads in Shropshire
Year Million vehicle miles
1993 1,516
1994 1,563
1995 1,596
1996 1,629
1997 1,669
1998 1,695
1999 1,723
2000 1,709
2001 1,757
2002 1,806
2003 1,826
2004 1,853
2005 1,863
2006 1,906
2007 1,900
2008 1,915
2009 1,896
2010 1,875
2011 1,875
2012 1,883
2013 1,902
2014 1,954
2015 1,991
2016 2,061
2017 2,099
2018 2,139
2019 2,150
2020 1,673
2021 1,900
2022 2,083
2023 2,135
2024 2,189
2025 2,208

Source:DfT 1993 to 2025 Updated

Reported injury collisions

Police-reported injury collisions in Shropshire, 2021 to 2025
Year CollisionsKilled or seriously injured
2021 357107
2022 416134
2023 348114
2024 389135
2025 337121

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

More road safety figures

Petrol and diesel prices in Shropshire

Unleaded petrol averages 172.6p a litre across 36 filling stations in Shropshire, 1.1p above the UK average. Diesel averages 198.7p, the same as the UK average. Prices checked 31 Oct, 19:32.

Cheapest petrol

  1. Texaco Mere Motors Ltd Ellesmere 159.9p
  2. Essar D A Roberts Fuels Ltd Grindley Brook Garage Whitchurch 160.9p
  3. Texaco Nesscliffe Service Station Shrewsbury 162.9p

Every filling station and price in Shropshire

How Shropshire compares

Shropshire compared with the West Midlands, England, the UK
Shropshire 541 3.5% 3.0% 4.9% 155 16.3
West Midlands 459 3.7% 2.9% 6.1% 164 12.9
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 Shropshire

There are 3 DVSA car practical test centres in Shropshire, and the highest pass rate in 2025/26 was 58.7% at Ludlow.

Other centres in the West Midlands:

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 the West Midlands

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

Councils in the West Midlands
Solihull 497 7.8% 3.5% 13.6% 278 10.2
Lichfield 542 5.4% 4.3% 7.2% 75 47.6
Bromsgrove 555 5.1% 4.2% 4.7% 191 19.1
Warwick 491 5.1% 4.4% 4.7% 201 16.4
Rugby 512 4.8% 4.1% 4.0% 159 19.9
Stafford 529 4.8% 4.1% 5.1% 148 22.0
Stratford-on-Avon 592 4.8% 4.1% 5.0% 200 19.0
Telford and Wrekin 481 4.3% 3.5% 7.5% 137 18.3
South Staffordshire 540 4.2% 3.6% 4.2% 120 25.3
Cannock Chase 501 4.1% 3.3% 5.4% 125 19.8
Malvern Hills 596 4.1% 3.5% 3.9% 123 25.7
Wychavon 590 4.1% 3.5% 4.6% 150 21.5
East Staffordshire 504 3.9% 3.2% 5.0% 133 19.7
Redditch 512 3.9% 3.0% 5.7% 81 29.0
Tamworth 486 3.9% 3.1% 5.3% 126 18.3
North Warwickshire 548 3.8% 2.9% 5.9% 137 18.5
Newcastle-under-Lyme 481 3.7% 2.9% 4.5% 161 13.7
Shropshire 541 3.5% 3.0% 4.9% 155 16.3
Nuneaton and Bedworth 484 3.4% 2.7% 4.6% 59 34.5
Worcester 483 3.4% 2.6% 4.8% 205 9.6
Dudley 472 3.3% 2.6% 5.0% 104 18.6
Herefordshire 568 3.3% 2.8% 4.2% 97 26.2
Staffordshire Moorlands 564 3.3% 2.8% 3.7% 107 23.2
Wyre Forest 548 3.2% 2.6% 4.2% 69 34.1
Stoke-on-Trent 416 3.1% 2.3% 6.4% 107 14.2
Walsall 420 3.0% 2.3% 5.8% 66 24.4
Wolverhampton 403 3.0% 2.2% 5.9% 69 21.8
Birmingham 347 2.8% 2.0% 8.1% 135 9.3
Coventry 387 2.7% 2.1% 6.9% 717 1.9
Sandwell 383 2.6% 1.8% 6.5% 88 14.4

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 251,256 licensed vehicles in Shropshire 26 October 2026
Plug-in and electric vehicles Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport End of June 2026 10,918 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 Shropshire 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.