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South West motoring statistics

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

Last updated
Records analysed
4,254,391 licensed vehicles in South West
Methodology
View methodology
  • Licensed cars 3,292,563 −2.7% on a year earlier
  • Private cars per 1,000 people 506 UK 441
  • Battery electric cars 162,605 4.9% of cars (UK 5.4%)
  • Electric share of private cars 2.6% UK 2.8%
  • Public chargers 9,232 157 per 100,000 people (UK 175)
  • Company-registered cars 9.6% UK 9.9%

How many cars are there in the South West?

There were 3,292,563 licensed cars in the South West at the end of March 2026, and 4,254,391 licensed vehicles of all kinds. That is 21.0% more cars than in 2010. Privately kept cars work out at 506 for every 1,000 residents (UK 441).

Licensed vehicles in the South West

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

Licensed cars and vehicles in the South West at the end of March each year
Year All vehiclesCars
2010 3,367,7752,722,107
2011 3,429,8692,763,795
2012 3,479,2102,799,778
2013 3,524,4262,831,395
2014 3,603,2732,894,934
2015 3,684,1062,958,455
2016 3,799,7253,044,063
2017 3,927,6623,135,743
2018 3,982,7693,169,613
2019 4,109,5833,250,983
2020 4,169,2173,301,802
2021 4,140,8113,248,336
2022 4,224,4633,284,599
2023 4,265,9153,304,511
2024 4,326,4693,348,112
2025 4,378,0083,383,092
2026 4,254,3913,292,563

Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 2026 Updated

Licensed vehicles by type

Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 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 South West compared
Year South WestEnglandUnited Kingdom
2011 524457–
2012 527455–
2013 533458–
2014 541463–
2015 546466473
2016 550471480
2017 565478488
2018 569480490
2019 580483493
2020 573477489
2021 575482493
2022 571478489
2023 570477489
2024 571478490

Source:ONS Mid-2024 Updated

Petrol, diesel and electric cars in the South West

54.9% of cars in the South West run on petrol and 30.2% on diesel. Diesel’s share peaked at 41.5% in 2017. Hybrids that do not plug in make up 7.4%, and cars that plug in 7.2%.

Cars by fuel type

Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 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 South West, end of March each year
Year PetrolDieselHybridBattery electricPlug-in hybrid
2010 70.1%29.5%0.2%0.0%0.0%
2011 68.1%31.5%0.2%0.0%0.0%
2012 65.9%33.6%0.3%0.0%0.0%
2013 64.1%35.4%0.3%0.0%0.0%
2014 62.1%37.3%0.4%0.0%0.0%
2015 60.3%38.9%0.4%0.1%0.1%
2016 58.8%40.3%0.5%0.1%0.1%
2017 57.4%41.5%0.6%0.1%0.2%
2018 57.2%41.4%0.8%0.1%0.3%
2019 57.9%40.4%0.9%0.2%0.5%
2020 58.4%39.2%1.2%0.4%0.6%
2021 58.0%38.3%1.7%1.0%0.8%
2022 57.3%36.7%2.5%2.1%1.2%
2023 56.7%34.9%3.3%3.2%1.5%
2024 56.1%33.0%4.4%4.2%2.0%
2025 55.1%31.1%6.0%5.2%2.3%
2026 54.9%30.2%7.4%4.9%2.2%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 2026 Updated

Electric cars in the South West

162,605 battery electric cars were licensed in the South West at the end of March 2026, 4.9% of all cars. With plug-in hybrids, 236,685 cars plug in. A year earlier there were 176,625.

Of the privately kept cars, which are registered at home addresses, 2.6% are battery electric (77,250 cars). Companies keep 52.5% of the area’s battery electric cars, against 9.6% of its cars overall. There are also 13,792 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 South West compared, end of March each year
Year South WestEnglandUnited 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 0.4%0.4%0.3%
2021 1.0%0.7%0.7%
2022 2.1%1.4%1.3%
2023 3.2%2.3%2.1%
2024 4.2%3.2%3.0%
2025 5.2%4.4%4.1%
2026 4.9%5.8%5.4%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 2026 Updated

Public EV chargers in the South West

There were 9,232 public chargers in the South West on 1 July 2026, 2,913 of them rapid or ultra-rapid (50kW and above). That is 157 for every 100,000 residents, against 175 across the UK. The count rose 16.2% from 1 January 2025.

For every public charger there are 13.3 privately kept plug-in cars in the South West (UK 11.9). A higher number means more competition for each public charger, though many drivers charge at home.

Public chargers

Public EV chargers in the South West by date
Date All public chargers50kW and above
Jan 2025 7,9472,276
Apr 2025 8,1912,414
Jul 2025 8,4302,514
Oct 2025 8,8232,633
Jan 2026 8,7162,692
Apr 2026 9,0672,732
Jul 2026 9,2322,913

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Chargers per 100,000 residents

Public chargers per 100,000 residents, the South West compared
Area All chargers50kW and above
South West 15750
England 17341
UK 17542

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Petrol and diesel prices in South West

Unleaded petrol averages 172.1p a litre across 749 filling stations in South West, 0.4p above the UK average. Diesel averages 195.0p, 0.4p above the UK average. Prices checked 16 Sept, 16:47.

Cheapest petrol

  1. Jet Allervale Garage Newton Abbot 159.9p
  2. Asda Quedgeley Supermarket Quedgeley 160.7p
  3. Tesco Gloucester Quedgeley Extra Gloucester 161.9p

Every filling station and price in South West

How the South West compares

South West compared with England, the UK
South West 506 4.9% 2.6% 9.6% 157 13.3
England 437 5.8% 2.9% 10.6% 173 12.4
United Kingdom4415.4%2.8%9.9%17511.9

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 March 2026.

Councils in the South West

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

Councils in the South West
South Gloucestershire 520 19.1% 3.1% 36.8% 162 15.8
Wiltshire 552 8.4% 2.9% 24.1% 117 18.3
Exeter 355 4.5% 2.5% 34.1% 259 5.4
Stroud 585 4.2% 3.8% 3.4% 199 15.6
Tewkesbury 564 4.1% 3.5% 3.7% 157 22.2
Cotswold 602 4.0% 3.4% 3.7% 310 10.6
Bath and North East Somerset 449 3.9% 3.4% 3.4% 90 26.8
North Somerset 546 3.9% 3.2% 4.4% 107 28.4
Cheltenham 464 3.6% 3.0% 3.5% 272 9.4
South Hams 568 3.6% 3.0% 3.8% 145 16.6
Swindon 468 3.5% 2.7% 5.6% 138 16.6
Isles of Scilly 233 3.3% 1.3% 5.0% 676 0.5
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole 472 3.1% 2.5% 4.0% 112 17.1
Dorset 571 3.1% 2.6% 3.8% 196 12.0
East Devon 542 3.1% 2.7% 3.4% 200 11.5
Forest of Dean 576 3.1% 2.7% 3.6% 194 11.9
Gloucester 463 3.0% 2.4% 4.5% 149 12.6
Teignbridge 547 3.0% 2.5% 3.7% 147 13.9
Bristol 360 2.8% 2.1% 4.7% 99 15.0
Mid Devon 557 2.8% 2.4% 3.9% 91 22.8
Somerset 555 2.8% 2.4% 3.7% 137 14.6
Cornwall 523 2.7% 2.2% 4.4% 235 7.5
West Devon 561 2.7% 2.4% 3.5% 178 11.7
North Devon 514 2.5% 2.0% 4.2% 208 7.8
Torridge 550 2.4% 2.0% 4.5% 107 15.6
Torbay 467 2.3% 1.8% 4.7% 97 13.6
Plymouth 424 2.1% 1.5% 4.6% 162 6.6

Data sources and methodology

Datasets used on this page
Figures Source Period Records Updated
Licensed vehicles Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport End of March 2026 4,254,391 licensed vehicles in South West 15 September 2026
Plug-in and electric vehicles Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport End of March 2026 254,762 plug-in vehicles 15 September 2026
Public chargers Electric vehicle public charging infrastructure statistics Department for Transport 1 July 2026 121,171 public chargers (UK) 15 September 2026
Population Mid-year population estimates Office for National Statistics Mid-2024 404 areas 15 September 2026
  • Coverage: licensing and charger figures cover the whole UK. Licensing figures in the South West 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.
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.