My Garage

Popular searches

South East · County

West Sussex motoring statistics

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

Last updated
Records analysed
594,150 licensed vehicles in West Sussex
Methodology
View methodology
  • Licensed cars 493,442 +0.8% on a year earlier
  • Private cars per 1,000 people 518 UK 441
  • Battery electric cars 17,104 3.5% of cars (UK 5.4%)
  • Electric share of private cars 2.9% UK 2.8%
  • Public chargers 1,762 193 per 100,000 people (UK 175)
  • Company-registered cars 4.0% UK 9.9%

How many cars are there in West Sussex?

There were 493,442 licensed cars in West Sussex at the end of March 2026, and 594,150 licensed vehicles of all kinds. That is 19.2% more cars than in 2010. Privately kept cars work out at 518 for every 1,000 residents (UK 441).

Licensed vehicles in West Sussex

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

Licensed cars and vehicles in West Sussex at the end of March each year
Year All vehiclesCars
2010 487,174413,976
2011 492,652418,642
2012 496,673421,093
2013 500,136424,386
2014 508,989431,603
2015 516,645437,166
2016 529,517447,140
2017 542,112456,814
2018 547,940461,014
2019 557,263467,987
2020 562,349473,009
2021 563,899471,200
2022 573,112476,560
2023 577,726479,500
2024 583,958485,131
2025 589,058489,543
2026 594,150493,442

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, West Sussex compared
Year West SussexSouth EastUnited Kingdom
2011 520534–
2012 518535–
2013 519541–
2014 523547–
2015 523551473
2016 528559480
2017 535567488
2018 535570490
2019 540572493
2020 535561489
2021 539564493
2022 536565489
2023 534567489
2024 534570490

Source:ONS Mid-2024 Updated

Petrol, diesel and electric cars in West Sussex

60.9% of cars in West Sussex run on petrol and 25.9% on diesel. Diesel’s share peaked at 32.6% in 2018. Hybrids that do not plug in make up 7.5%, and cars that plug in 5.3%.

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 West Sussex, end of March each year
Year PetrolDieselHybridBattery electricPlug-in hybrid
2010 77.2%22.4%0.2%0.0%0.0%
2011 75.5%24.1%0.3%0.0%0.0%
2012 73.8%25.7%0.3%0.0%0.0%
2013 72.3%27.2%0.4%0.0%0.0%
2014 70.7%28.7%0.4%0.0%0.0%
2015 69.1%30.1%0.5%0.0%0.0%
2016 67.7%31.4%0.6%0.1%0.1%
2017 66.6%32.3%0.7%0.1%0.1%
2018 66.1%32.6%0.9%0.1%0.2%
2019 65.8%32.6%1.1%0.2%0.3%
2020 65.6%32.4%1.3%0.3%0.3%
2021 65.1%32.1%1.7%0.5%0.5%
2022 64.3%31.6%2.4%0.9%0.7%
2023 63.6%30.7%3.2%1.3%0.9%
2024 62.9%29.4%4.4%1.9%1.1%
2025 62.1%27.7%5.8%2.6%1.4%
2026 60.9%25.9%7.5%3.5%1.8%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 2026 Updated

Electric cars in West Sussex

17,104 battery electric cars were licensed in West Sussex at the end of March 2026, 3.5% of all cars. With plug-in hybrids, 26,164 cars plug in. A year earlier there were 12,706.

Of the privately kept cars, which are registered at home addresses, 2.9% are battery electric (13,708 cars). Companies keep 19.9% of the area’s battery electric cars, against 4.0% of its cars overall. There are also 605 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, West Sussex compared, end of March each year
Year West SussexSouth EastUnited Kingdom
2016 0.1%0.1%0.1%
2017 0.1%0.1%0.1%
2018 0.1%0.2%0.1%
2019 0.2%0.2%0.2%
2020 0.3%0.5%0.3%
2021 0.5%1.0%0.7%
2022 0.9%1.9%1.3%
2023 1.3%3.0%2.1%
2024 1.9%4.2%3.0%
2025 2.6%5.7%4.1%
2026 3.5%8.7%5.4%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 2026 Updated

Public EV chargers in West Sussex

There were 1,762 public chargers in West Sussex on 1 July 2026, 316 of them rapid or ultra-rapid (50kW and above). That is 193 for every 100,000 residents, against 175 across the UK. The count rose 7.0% from 1 January 2026.

For every public charger there are 12.4 privately kept plug-in cars in West Sussex (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 West Sussex by date
Date All public chargers50kW and above
Jan 2026 1,647318
Apr 2026 1,762327
Jul 2026 1,762316

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Chargers per 100,000 residents

Public chargers per 100,000 residents, West Sussex compared
Area All chargers50kW and above
West Sussex 19335
South East 15940
England 17341
UK 17542

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Road traffic and collisions in West Sussex

Vehicles travelled an estimated 4,427 million miles on roads in West Sussex in 2025.

Traffic on all roads

Million vehicle miles a year on roads in West Sussex
Year Million vehicle miles
1993 3,914
1994 3,998
1995 4,063
1996 4,185
1997 4,276
1998 4,383
1999 4,497
2000 4,489
2001 4,513
2002 4,509
2003 4,546
2004 4,484
2005 4,469
2006 4,458
2007 4,422
2008 4,285
2009 4,213
2010 4,149
2011 4,168
2012 4,132
2013 4,092
2014 4,206
2015 4,321
2016 4,455
2017 4,473
2018 4,451
2019 4,479
2020 3,532
2021 3,898
2022 4,152
2023 4,265
2024 4,341
2025 4,427

Source:DfT 1993 to 2025 Updated

Reported injury collisions

Police-reported injury collisions in West Sussex, 2021 to 2025
Year CollisionsKilled or seriously injured
2021 1,515431
2022 1,826482
2023 1,810469
2024 1,681473
2025 1,613454

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

More road safety figures

Petrol and diesel prices in West Sussex

Unleaded petrol averages 172.4p a litre across 99 filling stations in West Sussex, 0.7p above the UK average. Diesel averages 195.1p, 0.5p above the UK average. Prices checked 16 Sept, 16:47.

Cheapest petrol

  1. Jet Shoreham Service Station Shoreham-By-Sea 164.9p
  2. Tesco Burgess Hill Superstore Burgess Hill 165.9p
  3. Tesco Shoreham-By-Sea Extra Shoreham-By-Sea 166.9p

Every filling station and price in West Sussex

How West Sussex compares

West Sussex compared with the South East, England, the UK
West Sussex 518 3.5% 2.9% 4.0% 193 12.4
South East 496 8.7% 3.2% 18.1% 159 16.9
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 West Sussex

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

Councils in West Sussex
Mid Sussex 531 4.1% 3.5% 5.0% 176 17.8
Horsham 580 4.0% 3.4% 3.4% 195 16.4
Chichester 557 3.5% 2.9% 4.0% 173 14.7
Worthing 465 3.1% 2.5% 3.5% 255 7.1
Arun 529 3.0% 2.5% 3.3% 166 12.8
Crawley 433 3.0% 2.3% 4.9% 223 6.9
Adur 473 2.9% 2.4% 4.0% 168 10.0

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 594,150 licensed vehicles in West Sussex 15 September 2026
Plug-in and electric vehicles Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport End of March 2026 27,221 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 West Sussex 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.