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Wirral motoring statistics

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

Last updated
Records analysed
197,538 licensed vehicles in Wirral
Methodology
View methodology
  • Licensed cars 158,249 +0.9% on a year earlier
  • Private cars per 1,000 people 453 UK 441
  • Battery electric cars 5,393 3.4% of cars (UK 5.4%)
  • Electric share of private cars 2.8% 171st highest of 361 councils
  • Public chargers 234 71 per 100,000 people (UK 175)
  • Company-registered cars 5.9% UK 9.9%

How many cars are there in Wirral?

There were 158,249 licensed cars in Wirral at the end of March 2026, and 197,538 licensed vehicles of all kinds. That is 12.8% more cars than in 2010. Privately kept cars work out at 453 for every 1,000 residents, 115th lowest of 361 councils (UK 441).

Licensed vehicles in Wirral

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

Licensed cars and vehicles in Wirral at the end of March each year
Year All vehiclesCars
2010 162,428140,338
2011 163,794140,339
2012 163,814139,779
2013 164,008140,241
2014 166,767142,225
2015 170,069143,991
2016 173,851146,069
2017 175,239146,943
2018 176,519148,465
2019 180,136150,050
2020 182,710152,180
2021 185,364151,009
2022 188,832152,274
2023 191,539153,602
2024 193,883155,242
2025 196,045156,798
2026 197,538158,249

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, Wirral compared
Year WirralNorth WestUnited Kingdom
2011 438429–
2012 437425–
2013 441428–
2014 447433–
2015 451435473
2016 454438480
2017 459440488
2018 465443490
2019 470448493
2020 469446489
2021 474477493
2022 474472489
2023 474472489
2024 474474490

Source:ONS Mid-2024 Updated

Petrol, diesel and electric cars in Wirral

58.7% of cars in Wirral run on petrol and 28.1% on diesel. Diesel’s share peaked at 34.6% in 2018. Hybrids that do not plug in make up 7.8%, and cars that plug in 5.0%.

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 Wirral, end of March each year
Year PetrolDieselHybridBattery electricPlug-in hybrid
2010 77.7%22.0%0.2%0.0%0.0%
2011 75.8%23.7%0.2%0.0%0.0%
2012 74.1%25.5%0.3%0.0%0.0%
2013 72.3%27.2%0.4%0.0%0.0%
2014 70.1%29.3%0.4%0.0%0.0%
2015 68.2%31.0%0.6%0.0%0.0%
2016 66.3%32.9%0.6%0.1%0.0%
2017 65.0%34.1%0.7%0.1%0.1%
2018 64.2%34.6%0.9%0.1%0.1%
2019 64.0%34.6%1.1%0.1%0.1%
2020 63.8%34.5%1.3%0.2%0.2%
2021 63.2%34.3%1.8%0.3%0.3%
2022 62.5%33.9%2.4%0.6%0.4%
2023 61.9%33.1%3.2%0.9%0.6%
2024 61.2%31.7%4.5%1.5%0.8%
2025 60.1%30.0%6.0%2.3%1.1%
2026 58.7%28.1%7.8%3.4%1.6%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 2026 Updated

Electric cars in Wirral

5,393 battery electric cars were licensed in Wirral at the end of March 2026, 3.4% of all cars, 163rd lowest of 361 councils. With plug-in hybrids, 7,924 cars plug in. A year earlier there were 3,672.

Of the privately kept cars, which are registered at home addresses, 2.8% are battery electric (4,096 cars), 14th highest of 35 councils in the North West. Companies keep 24.0% of the area’s battery electric cars, against 5.9% of its cars overall. There are also 200 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, Wirral compared, end of March each year
Year WirralNorth WestUnited Kingdom
2016 0.1%0.1%0.1%
2017 0.1%0.1%0.1%
2018 0.1%0.1%0.1%
2019 0.1%0.1%0.2%
2020 0.2%0.2%0.3%
2021 0.3%0.7%0.7%
2022 0.6%1.5%1.3%
2023 0.9%2.6%2.1%
2024 1.5%3.8%3.0%
2025 2.3%5.4%4.1%
2026 3.4%6.2%5.4%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 2026 Updated

Public EV chargers in Wirral

There were 234 public chargers in Wirral on 1 July 2026, 80 of them rapid or ultra-rapid (50kW and above). That is 71 for every 100,000 residents, 41st lowest of 361 councils, against 175 across the UK. The count rose 8.3% from 1 January 2026.

For every public charger there are 29.9 privately kept plug-in cars in Wirral (UK 11.9), 37th most 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 Wirral by date
Date All public chargers50kW and above
Jan 2026 21666
Apr 2026 21068
Jul 2026 23480

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Chargers per 100,000 residents

Public chargers per 100,000 residents, Wirral compared
Area All chargers50kW and above
Wirral 7124
Merseyside 11126
North West 11240
England 17341
UK 17542

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Electric cars by neighbourhood

Wirral has 42 ONS neighbourhoods (middle layer super output areas, about 7,000 residents each). In the typical one, 2.7% of privately kept vehicles are battery electric; in the highest, 4.2%. ONS names neighbourhoods by council and number, not by place name.

Neighbourhoods in Wirral with the highest battery electric share of privately kept vehicles
Neighbourhood (MSOA) Private vehicles Battery electric Electric share Plug-in share
Wirral 040 6,346 267 4.2% 7.5%
Wirral 038 4,625 165 3.6% 5.5%
Wirral 018 4,839 168 3.5% 5.0%
Wirral 041 4,395 151 3.4% 4.7%
Wirral 006 3,899 128 3.3% 4.3%
Wirral 020 4,205 140 3.3% 4.7%
Wirral 028 4,860 162 3.3% 5.9%
Wirral 014 4,172 133 3.2% 4.9%
Wirral 012 4,369 134 3.1% 4.2%
Wirral 015 4,312 130 3.0% 5.0%
Lowest electric shares
Wirral 008 2,270 0 0.0% 1.1%
Wirral 025 2,788 20 0.7% 2.2%
Wirral 021 3,243 27 0.8% 1.6%
Wirral 027 3,010 27 0.9% 1.9%
Wirral 016 2,414 21 0.9% 1.7%

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

Road traffic and collisions in Wirral

Vehicles travelled an estimated 1,118 million miles on roads in Wirral in 2025.

Traffic on all roads

Million vehicle miles a year on roads in Wirral
Year Million vehicle miles
1993 877
1994 886
1995 900
1996 921
1997 940
1998 966
1999 977
2000 976
2001 985
2002 1,026
2003 1,020
2004 1,027
2005 1,069
2006 1,048
2007 1,065
2008 1,044
2009 1,019
2010 1,005
2011 1,024
2012 1,014
2013 1,014
2014 1,046
2015 1,069
2016 1,075
2017 1,068
2018 1,072
2019 1,090
2020 896
2021 991
2022 1,049
2023 1,100
2024 1,105
2025 1,118

Source:DfT 1993 to 2025 Updated

Reported injury collisions

Police-reported injury collisions in Wirral, 2021 to 2025
Year CollisionsKilled or seriously injured
2021 415116
2022 437126
2023 401128
2024 342107
2025 343104

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

More road safety figures

Petrol and diesel prices in Wirral

Unleaded petrol averages 174.3p a litre across 30 filling stations in Wirral, 2.6p above the UK average. Diesel averages 196.5p, 1.9p above the UK average. Prices checked 16 Sept, 16:47.

Cheapest petrol

  1. Go Tranmere Birkenhead 161.9p
  2. Asda Bromborough Superstore Bromborough 170.9p
  3. Valero MFG Bebington Bebington 170.9p

Every filling station and price in Wirral

How Wirral compares

Wirral compared with Merseyside, the North West, England, the UK
Wirral 453 3.4% 2.8% 5.9% 71 29.9
Merseyside 388 3.4% 2.6% 7.4% 111 16.1
North West 427 6.2% 2.7% 11.8% 112 17.4
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 Merseyside

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

Councils in Merseyside
Knowsley 380 4.1% 3.2% 8.5% 57 35.7
St Helens 452 3.5% 2.6% 6.0% 72 26.1
Wirral 453 3.4% 2.8% 5.9% 71 29.9
Liverpool 302 3.3% 2.2% 9.5% 196 6.4
Sefton 425 3.3% 2.7% 6.8% 61 33.9

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 197,538 licensed vehicles in Wirral 15 September 2026
Plug-in and electric vehicles Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport End of March 2026 8,298 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
Neighbourhoods Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport End of March 2026 35,672 small areas (LSOAs) in England and Wales 15 September 2026
  • Coverage: licensing and charger figures cover the whole UK. Licensing figures in Wirral 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.