Carbon reduction on roads

The Scottish Government committed to phasing out the need for new petrol and diesel vans by 2032 in 2017. The Climate Change Plan update (published December 2020) brought that commitment forward to 2030. 

We have invested over £65 million since 2011 to support development of Scotland’s public EV charging network and by population Scotland has one of the most comprehensive public charging networks in the UK.

Our Vision for public EV charging sets out the key areas underpinning a truly world-class, people-focused charging network –working seamlessly wherever you live or need to get to.

We are continuing to invest in public EV charging through the £30 million EV Infrastructure Fund, supporting local authorities to work with the private sector to leverage additional investment and continue to grow public EV charging across Scotland.

To help the public sector lead fleet decarbonisation from the front, we have provided over £80 million to support the public sector to decarbonise its fleet.  We have supported this transition by supporting the decarbonisation of cars, vans and a small number of demonstration projects focusing on heavy and specialist vehicles.

We have provided financial support to install charge points at people’s homes and at workplaces, as well as loans for individuals and businesses to support the switch to electric vehicles.

Scottish Government have invested over £65 million since 2011 to support development of Scotland’s public EV charging network. Local authorities have delivered the majority of this investment, but funding has also been provided to other public bodies and the third and private sectors to install public EV charging.

The Local Authority Installation Programme (LAIP), has been the main delivery vehicle supporting Scotland’s Local Authorities to install publicly available charge points. Grant funding was offered to Local Authorities through the Programme to install chargers on public land to help establish a comprehensive public charging network across all of Scotland.

Other funds, like the Low Carbon Travel and Transport Fund and Switched on Towns and Cities have provided targeted support to develop public charging and low carbon transport hubs as well as initiatives that support a range of EV charging users, including those without access to off street parking or home charging and for EV car clubs.

In 2017, the Scottish Government made a commitment to continue investing in our electric charging infrastructure until 2022. We have delivered against this commitment and by 2022 Scotland had one of the most comprehensive public EV charging networks in the UK. In 2022, Scottish Government then set a target of doubling the size of Scotland’s public charging network to 6,000 public charge points by 2026, through a combination of continued public and private sector investment, Scotland is on track to meet the 2026 target.

Continued support for local authorities to invest in public EV charging is now being provided through the EV Infrastructure Fund.

The Low Carbon Travel and Transport (LCTT) Challenge Fund aimed to support the public and third sectors to deliver innovative low carbon transport and active travel hubs. Projects often incorporate both low carbon and active elements, encouraging the use of a range of low carbon, active and public transport options.

Low carbon transport hubs will provide EV charging, often combined with renewable energy generation and battery storage. The locations and composition of these hubs will be determined by local circumstances and demand.

The Low Carbon Travel and Transport Challenge Fund was launched in 2016 and awarded approximately £18M funding to 24 projects. Projects delivered a mix of active travel and low carbon transport hubs.

Active Travel hubs  provide focal points for cycling and walking routes. The specifics of each hub are tailored to the location and based upon need but can typically include:

• Access to shared bikes
  
• Safe and secure facilities for personal bikes
  
• Bike repair/maintenance facilities
  
• Improved links to public transport
  
• Local path networks
  
• Travel information
  
• Associated outreach activity

Low Carbon Transport hubs  will provide EV charging and support the use of active and sustainable transport modes. The location and design of low carbon hubs is determined by local circumstances and demand.

State aid and the Low Carbon Travel and Transport Challenge Fund

We discussed the potential activities included within the Low Carbon Travel and Transport Challenge Fund with the Scottish Government's State Aid Unit and ERDF team. The State Aid Unit notified a General Block Exemption Regulation scheme covering various articles that covers most operational activities where state aid is considered to be present, although all activities were assessed on a case by case basis.

The Electric A9 has reinforced Scotland’s electric vehicle public charging network by helping EV drivers confidently travel across Scotland, offering important advantages to motorists in rural and urban areas of Scotland.

It has delivered a range of EV charging opportunities in and around local communities along the A9. EA9 charging Locations generally provide multiple charge points, with access to associated amenities. 

The Electric A9 has over 160 EV charge points installed across 35 locations, providing EV charging for long distance journeys, local charging for business, residents and for drivers at destinations in and around local communities. We are continuing to work with local authorities along the A9 corridor to help them develop approaches to work more closely with the private sector to continue to develop public EV charging for drivers travelling on the A9.

Scotland’s public sector covers a range of organisations that include central and local government as well as a range of other bodies that are responsible for delivering key public services. Many of these organisations operate fleet to deliver these services and those vehicles can range from motorbikes and cars through to heavy goods and specialist vehicles, like bin lorries.

Scottish Government has already provided over £80 million of funding through Switched on Fleets and other initiatives to support decarbonisation of the public sector fleet. This funding has supported the installation of fleet charging infrastructure and the purchase and lease of zero and ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEV).

Surveys of the public sector fleet carried out for Transport Scotland in 2020, 2022 and at the end of 2023 identified approximately 30,000 vehicles that operate across the public sector. These surveys help us to identify some high-level trends in how the public sector fleet is made up and used.

The information collected in 2023 suggests that in some areas of the public sector fleets have been rationalised, reducing the number of individual vehicles used. A comparison of the total fleet numbers from 63 public bodies that reported fleet in both 2022 and 2023 indicates that over half of the 63 public bodies have decreased the size of their fleet, reporting an overall reduction of over 2170 vehicles across 33 bodies. The other 30 public bodies reported that their fleet numbers has remained the same or have increased in size. Across those bodies that previously reported fleet in 2022 the fleet has reduced by over 1000 vehicles. 

Local authorities operate the largest proportion of public sector fleet vehicles, followed by emergency services and health bodies. Table 1 below breaks down data by public body type, the number of vehicles and the percentage of ULEV and zero emission vehicles. View further details on Scottish public bodies.

ULEV (Ultra-low emission vehicles) include petrol and diesel plug-in hybrids, range extended battery electric vehicles and diesel hydrogen dual fuel vehicles.

Table 2 below shows a breakdown of some of the vehicle types within the public sector fleet, the percentage of vehicles that are ultra-low emission vehicles and zero emission.

It has been a challenging journey to decarbonise fleets

The Scottish Government welcomes the progress made to date in terms of vehicle decarbonisation as well as development of EV fleet charging networks, particularly given the challenges that have influenced progress over the past few years. Challenges have included COVID19 impacts on manufacturing, a global microchip shortage affecting supply chains and the high cost and limited options related to zero emission specialised and heavier vehicles that are currently available.

Scottish Government remains committed to working with the public sector, supporting and enabling Scotland’s public sector to continue to lead fleet decarbonisation from the front.

What next?

Transport Scotland officials are working with public sector fleet managers to develop an Action Plan that identifies key opportunities and actions that will enable the public sector to align efficient public spending with maximising fleet emission reductions and available technology.