Mayor announces installation of 10,000 electric vehicle chargepoints across West Midlands
Editorial Team
Posted On May 2, 2025
West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker has confirmed that 10,000 electric vehicle (EV) connection points will be installed across roadsides in the region.
According to the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), over 4,000 public chargepoints already exist in the area, making it the fifth highest in England outside of London. Over the past year, the charging network has expanded by 36%. Data from the Department for Transport cited by the WMCA indicates the number of chargers in the West Midlands is increasing at a quicker rate than in several other regions of the UK.
The region currently has the equivalent of 11 public chargers per square mile. Transport for West Midlands, a division of the WMCA, is working with local councils to expand the network using funding from the government’s Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) scheme.
The plans include almost 200 chargers across nine ultra-fast charging sites, referred to as ‘filling stations’, where vehicles can be charged with a 100-mile range in less than 15 minutes.
Outline planning permission has been granted for the first of these sites on Chester Road in Erdington, Birmingham. The plans were announced in January, detailing three initial stations to be located along major roads in the north, east and south of the region.
The Erdington site is part of a broader redevelopment of the former GKN factory, led by property developer Chancerygate.
Further land has been acquired for ultra-rapid charging hubs on Bristol Road South in Longbridge, Birmingham, and Coventry Road in Sheldon, which lies between Solihull and Birmingham. Each site is set to contain 20 ultra-fast chargers.
CGI images of the Chester Road and Bristol Road locations depict solar photovoltaic arrays above the charging bays. However, the published plans do not specifically reference solar car ports or specify the electricity sources for the charging stations.
Repurposing former industrial or fuel sites as EV charging hubs is becoming more common. EV charging company Be.EV recently announced a £4 million investment to regenerate a disused petrol station in Failsworth, Greater Manchester. The site has been inactive for 15 years and the development is part of the region’s ten-year industrial strategy.
Image: West Midlands Combined Authority.
