A major overhaul of motorway EV charging infrastructure is now underway and will see more than 20 ‘Electric Hubs’ open at service stations by Q2 2022.

The Gatwick Electric Forecourt will be a flagship site, and will enable 36 EVs to be charged simultaneously with high-power chargers, while also hosting a café,  waiting lounge with free superfast WiFi, convenience supermarket, children’s play area and a dedicated educational space on EVs

It’s billed as the biggest motorway EV charging upgrade in UK history and forms part of Gridserve’s plan to revolutionise charging across the UK. This follows its acquisition of Ecotricity’s Electric Highway network in June 2021 and its continued work to upgrade the existing motorway charging network.

A total of 11 Gridserve Electric Hubs are already under construction at motorway sites – each featuring between six and 12 350kW ultra high-power chargers with contactless payment and capable of adding up to 100 miles of range in less than 10 minutes. These are the first of more than 20 Electric Hubs planned to go live in early 2022.

In the next phase a further 50 additional Electric Hub sites will follow, including at locations in Wales and Cornwall; areas that have historically been left behind in the EV transition.

Gridserve also has two new Electric Forecourts under construction, building on the inaugural site at Braintree, Essex. Situated adjacent to major transport routes and motorways, the new Electric Forecourts include a flagship site at Gatwick Airport – said to be the first in the world to be hosted at an international airport – and Norwich, and will go live in 2022.

Several additional Electric Forecourt sites now also have planning permission, including Uckfield, Gateshead, Plymouth and Bromborough, with more than 30 additional sites also under development as part of the company’s commitment to deliver over 100 Electric Forecourts.

The new sites are part of Gridserve’s plans to support drivers going electric well ahead of the 2030 ban on new petrol and diesel cars.

The business is also developing several large-scale hybrid solar + battery farms to supply renewable solar energy as part of a “sun-to-wheel” ecosystem, creating a net zero carbon transport system also said to provide the most competitive rate for high-powered charging today.

Toddington Harper, CEO of Gridserve, said: “Our mission is to deliver sustainable energy and move the needle on climate change, and that is exactly what we are doing – delivering.

“Getting people into electric vehicles is a big part of our vision but to do that, charging has to be simple and free of anxiety, which is why we’ve designed our network entirely around the needs of drivers, listening to our customers’ needs and providing the best possible level of customer service to deliver the confidence people need to make the switch to electric transport today, eight years ahead of the 2030 ban on petrol and diesel cars.”