The number of charging points for electric vehicles is set to reach 300,000 by 2030, according to government plans, but car associations say rollout is not fast enough.
Under the plans, operators must ensure drivers can compare prices and pay with contactless cards.
However, the RAC said the charging point target “might sound impressive” but fears the number will be “insufficient” to drive demand.
The UK currently has over 30,000 public charging points for electric vehicles.
The Department for Transport (DfT) said the number of charging stations by the end of the decade will be almost five times what there are on UK roads today.
It said the £500m scheme would include £450m to encourage public charging points and on-street charging for people without a driveway.
The funds were previously announced as part of the government’s £1.6billion electric vehicle infrastructure strategy, but the government has now given details on how the money will be spent.
New standards and laws mean operators must provide real-time data for customers to check the status of charging stations and apps, so customers can find the closest available one.
They must also have a 99% reliability rate at fast charging stations.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “We are moving forward with our plans to help Brits go electric, with our growing charging network making it easier to travel across the country.”
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps added: “No matter where you live – be it a city center or a rural village, north, south, east or west of the country, we are making the switch to electricity and making sure no one is left behind in the process.”
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But Sir John Armitt, chairman of the National Infrastructure Commission, which advises the government on key infrastructure, said in a report that a gap was emerging between the government’s aspirations for net zero and the measures being taken to achieve it.
“We need to accelerate the introduction of charging points for electric vehicles and accelerate the installation of fast and street charging facilities so that the 2030 date for the end of sales of new petrol and diesel cars remains achievable,” he said.
RAC politician Nicholas Lyes said it was “gratifying” to see the government setting “ambitious reliability targets for the charging stations themselves” as many current and future EV drivers “worry that the charging units will be out of order by the time they arrive”. .
He also warned that the timeframe for installing 300,000 charging points would need to be quicker as drivers look to switch to electric cars “en masse” ahead of the 2030 sales ban on new petrol and diesel cars.
The AA said action was needed to address the lack of charging points in rural areas.
Edmund King, AA President, said: “As we rapidly approach the 2030 deadline for new zero-emission vehicles, it is vital that we get our charging infrastructure in place. Although great progress has been made, there is still work to be done to convince drivers of the number and, above all, the reliability of charging stations.
“To give potential electric car drivers confidence and power, we need more and more reliable and accessible charging points as soon as possible.”
As well as expanding the UK charging network, the Government also plans to build at least 6,000 charging points on English motorways by 2035 through an existing £950m fast charging fund.
Over the decade between 2011 and 2021, the total number of charging stations in the UK grew from around 1,500 to more than 48,000, both public and private, according to industry figures.
The Society of Motoring Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said electrified vehicles accounted for almost 16,000 units, more than one in four cars produced in the UK last month.
Overall, UK vehicle production in February fell from 105,000 units in 2021 to 61,000 units in the same month this year, reflecting ongoing global shortages of computer chips for car production.
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