Labour has scrapped the Rapid Charging Fund, five years after the funding pot for expanding the UK’s rapid charging facilities on motorways and A-roads was announced by the previous administration.

The Rapid Charging Fund (RCF) was first pledged in the March 2020 Budget to help businesses with the cost of connecting fast charge points to the electricity grid, supporting the rollout of a rapid charging network for electric vehicles. But, as revealed in a new report by The Guardian, it’s now been dropped by Labour, which has instead set away £400m to support the rollout of charging infrastructure, as announced in this month’s Spending Review.

The £950m RCF was meant to help with the rollout of motorway chargers, seen as vital for giving current and prospective EV drivers the reassurance to make long journeys, by funding prohibitively expensive grid connections. The Conservatives had said the fund would help support the rollout of at least 6,000 high-powered charge points across England’s motorways and major A-roads by 2035.

It was trialled at 10 sites under the Tories and a consultation on its design was run in early 2024 but the findings were never published.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) had previously warned that the subsidies could distort competition between motorway service area operators.

According to The Guardian, the Department for Transport said the RCF had never formally been included in budget plans, so the promise was unfunded.

“The Rapid Charging Fund was designed to support the rollout of charging infrastructure on motorways and major A roads – but the previous government did not set out detailed plans to deliver this,” a Department for Transport spokesperson said.

The DfT also said the since the fund was announced in 2020, the market has changed significantly.

The move has been greeted by some in the industry, as the focus shifts to on-street charging.

Ian Johnston, CEO of Osprey Charging, said: “New funding should be more effectively deployed on projects in prime locations where the grid connection costs render the site unviable – whether A-roads, underserved regions or the small number of motorway locations with unviable grid – rather than gifted to all motorway sites regardless of the costs, as was envisaged under the RCF.”

But other EV industry stakeholders have questioned why the full £950m is not being made available in new funding.

John Lewis, CEO of on-street charging specialist Char.gy, said: “The key question now is: couldn’t the full amount have been directed towards the EV effort – whether through the continued rollout of on-street charging or other consumer incentives – to give people greater confidence to make the switch to electric?”

And the National Franchised Dealers Association (NFDA) said it was disappointing to see the failure of the Rapid Charging Fund and added that robust charging infrastructure is essential to support the growing number of EV drivers.

Sue Robinson, chief executive of the industry body, welcomed the Government’s new £400m initiative to address the shortcomings of the previous scheme but stressed the importance of streamlined processes and collaboration with industry stakeholders to avoid similar pitfalls.

Recent polling by Ipsos Mori highlights that concerns over charging infrastructure, rather than range, are now the primary barrier to EV adoption, and the NFDA said this ‘charge anxiety’ must be addressed to ensure consumer confidence in making the switch to zero-emission vehicles.

Robinson went on: “Franchised dealers play a key role in guiding consumers through the EV buying journey, but without sufficient charging points, many drivers remain hesitant to make the switch. The Government must work closely with industry to ensure that future initiatives are practical, commercially viable and meet the needs of both motorists and businesses.”