West Midlands · County

Worcestershire motoring statistics

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

Last updated
Records analysed
442,217 licensed vehicles in Worcestershire
Methodology
View methodology
  • Licensed cars 358,256 −1.8% on a year earlier
  • Private cars per 1,000 people 550 UK 444
  • Battery electric cars 14,353 4.0% of cars (UK 5.8%)
  • Electric share of private cars 3.3% UK 3.1%
  • Public chargers 865 139 per 100,000 people (UK 175)
  • Company-registered cars 4.6% UK 10.0%

How many cars are there in Worcestershire?

There were 358,256 licensed cars in Worcestershire at the end of June 2026, and 442,217 licensed vehicles of all kinds. That is 13.8% more cars than in 2010. Privately kept cars work out at 550 for every 1,000 residents (UK 444).

Licensed vehicles in Worcestershire

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

Licensed cars and vehicles in Worcestershire at the end of March each year
Year All vehiclesCars
2010 374,706314,909
2011 377,157316,999
2012 381,090320,329
2013 389,468327,527
2014 398,163334,321
2015 404,538339,873
2016 411,322344,332
2017 424,185354,633
2018 424,176353,941
2019 427,218353,949
2020 422,785351,194
2021 430,624353,773
2022 466,818378,380
2023 465,535376,201
2024 446,061362,353
2025 448,762364,714
2026 442,217358,256

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, Worcestershire compared
Year WorcestershireWest MidlandsUnited Kingdom
2011 560506–
2012 562502–
2013 571503–
2014 578500–
2015 584506473
2016 586513480
2017 599523488
2018 595524490
2019 592519493
2020 586515489
2021 585485493
2022 621480489
2023 611479489
2024 583476490

Source:ONS Mid-2024 Updated

Petrol, diesel and electric cars in Worcestershire

56.0% of cars in Worcestershire run on petrol and 30.3% on diesel. Diesel’s share peaked at 39.8% in 2017. Hybrids that do not plug in make up 7.2%, and cars that plug in 6.1%.

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 Worcestershire, end of March each year
Year PetrolDieselHybridBattery electricPlug-in hybrid
2010 70.2%29.5%0.2%0.0%0.0%
2011 68.5%31.1%0.2%0.0%0.0%
2012 66.1%33.5%0.2%0.0%0.0%
2013 63.9%35.5%0.3%0.1%0.0%
2014 62.5%36.8%0.3%0.2%0.0%
2015 61.2%38.1%0.4%0.1%0.1%
2016 60.4%38.8%0.4%0.1%0.1%
2017 59.3%39.8%0.5%0.2%0.1%
2018 59.4%39.4%0.6%0.2%0.2%
2019 60.2%38.5%0.8%0.2%0.2%
2020 60.6%37.6%1.0%0.4%0.3%
2021 60.2%37.0%1.5%0.7%0.5%
2022 59.4%34.8%2.4%1.9%1.3%
2023 59.0%33.8%2.9%2.4%1.5%
2024 58.1%33.6%4.3%2.2%1.4%
2025 56.6%31.7%6.3%3.2%1.8%
2026 56.0%30.3%7.2%4.0%2.1%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of June 2026 Updated

Electric cars in Worcestershire

14,353 battery electric cars were licensed in Worcestershire at the end of June 2026, 4.0% of all cars. With plug-in hybrids, 21,731 cars plug in. A year earlier there were 11,529.

Of the privately kept cars, which are registered at home addresses, 3.3% are battery electric (11,201 cars). Companies keep 22.0% of the area’s battery electric cars, against 4.6% of its cars overall. There are also 374 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, Worcestershire compared, end of March each year
Year WorcestershireWest MidlandsUnited Kingdom
2016 0.1%0.1%0.1%
2017 0.2%0.1%0.1%
2018 0.2%0.1%0.1%
2019 0.2%0.2%0.2%
2020 0.4%0.5%0.4%
2021 0.7%0.7%0.8%
2022 1.9%1.0%1.5%
2023 2.4%1.4%2.3%
2024 2.2%1.8%3.2%
2025 3.2%2.7%4.4%
2026 4.0%3.7%5.8%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of June 2026 Updated

Public EV chargers in Worcestershire

There were 865 public chargers in Worcestershire on 1 July 2026, 370 of them rapid or ultra-rapid (50kW and above). That is 139 for every 100,000 residents, against 175 across the UK. The count rose 7.9% from 1 January 2026.

For every public charger there are 20.3 privately kept plug-in cars in Worcestershire (UK 12.9). A higher number means more competition for each public charger, though many drivers charge at home.

Public chargers

Public EV chargers in Worcestershire by date
Date All public chargers50kW and above
Jan 2026 802300
Apr 2026 820333
Jul 2026 865370

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Chargers per 100,000 residents

Public chargers per 100,000 residents, Worcestershire compared
Area All chargers50kW and above
Worcestershire 13960
West Midlands 16446
England 17341
UK 17542

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Road traffic and collisions in Worcestershire

Vehicles travelled an estimated 4,665 million miles on roads in Worcestershire in 2025.

Traffic on all roads

Million vehicle miles a year on roads in Worcestershire
Year Million vehicle miles
1993 3,335
1994 3,407
1995 3,481
1996 3,645
1997 3,762
1998 3,848
1999 3,959
2000 3,974
2001 3,930
2002 4,091
2003 3,994
2004 4,084
2005 4,089
2006 4,228
2007 4,283
2008 4,202
2009 4,159
2010 4,102
2011 4,124
2012 4,008
2013 4,078
2014 4,203
2015 4,282
2016 4,357
2017 4,397
2018 4,390
2019 4,452
2020 3,416
2021 3,903
2022 4,352
2023 4,472
2024 4,594
2025 4,665

Source:DfT 1993 to 2025 Updated

Reported injury collisions

Police-reported injury collisions in Worcestershire, 2021 to 2025
Year CollisionsKilled or seriously injured
2021 758226
2022 755206
2023 653209
2024 688223
2025 656227

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

More road safety figures

Petrol and diesel prices in Worcestershire

Unleaded petrol averages 173.2p a litre across 53 filling stations in Worcestershire, 1.7p above the UK average. Diesel averages 199.8p, 1.1p above the UK average. Prices checked 31 Oct, 19:32.

How Worcestershire compares

Worcestershire compared with the West Midlands, England, the UK
Worcestershire 550 4.0% 3.3% 4.6% 139 20.3
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 Worcestershire

There are 2 DVSA car practical test centres in Worcestershire, and the highest pass rate in 2025/26 was 51.9% at Worcester.

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 Worcestershire

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

Councils in Worcestershire
Bromsgrove 555 5.1% 4.2% 4.7% 191 19.1
Malvern Hills 596 4.1% 3.5% 3.9% 123 25.7
Wychavon 590 4.1% 3.5% 4.6% 150 21.5
Redditch 512 3.9% 3.0% 5.7% 81 29.0
Worcester 483 3.4% 2.6% 4.8% 205 9.6
Wyre Forest 548 3.2% 2.6% 4.2% 69 34.1

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 442,217 licensed vehicles in Worcestershire 26 October 2026
Plug-in and electric vehicles Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport End of June 2026 22,361 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
  • Coverage: licensing and charger figures cover the whole UK. Licensing figures in Worcestershire 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.

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.