Only two major UK theme parks have electric car chargers, new report finds

An RAC-conducted has revealed the majority of theme parks in the UK do not offer any chargers for electric vehicle owners.

As sales of EVs continue to grow in the UK, more families will be spending time together by travelling to tourist attractions in their new car.

However, the new report found that only five major tourist attractions, including Thorpe Park, Chessington World of Adventures and M&Ds, feature a place to charge electric cars.

According to the organisation, the average distance between a theme park and the nearest ultra-rapid EV charger was seven miles.

Nevertheless, some attractions, such as Pleasurewood Hills and Flamingo Land, require motorists to travel up to 25 miles to charge their car.

READ MORE: EV owners share their frustration of home chargers as satisfaction rates fall

Rod Dennis, a spokesman for the RAC, explained that the long distances that many families travel to get to theme parks means chargers would be an important addition.

He said: “Even though most people visiting adventure and theme parks in electric cars will be starting out fully charged from home, many will still need to charge on the way back depending on the length of their journey and their vehicle’s range.

“For those travelling considerable distances to reach them it surely makes sense to have some chargers at theme parks as cars will be parked for long periods, making slower chargers ideal.”

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The RAC highlighted that several major theme parks across Europe already feature large numbers of electric vehicle chargers.

The attraction with the largest number is currently Efteling in the Netherlands, which sports 174 EV chargers in it’s car park.

However, to support the growing number of electric vehicle owners in the UK, both Legoland Windsor and Alton Towers have committed to installing chargers in their car parks by the end of 2023.

Quentin Willson, former host of Top Gear and founder of the EV campaign group FairCharge, described the significance of installing chargers in these areas.

He explained: “Theme parks are an obvious example of how we need to make sure the UK’s future charging infrastructure is really joined up.

“Drivers will base their leisure choice destinations – as many already do – on if there are reliable charging facilities. This is the future.”

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