Ford and British Gas challenge Britain's smallest town to make EV switch

Michael Pullan, Senior Communications Manager

T: 07557 619446

E: Michael.Pullan@britishgas.co.uk

• Fordswitch: Britain’s smallest town, Fordwich, challenged to go electric,
• New research* shows huge majority of those in small towns (79%) would not feel confident purchasing an EV as their next vehicle
• British Gas installing a legacy charge point to encourage the switch

British Gas is supporting Ford of Britain’s challenge to the population of Fordwich, Britain's smallest town, to switch to electric as new research* shows a large majority of those in the countryside (82%), small towns (79%) and villages (76%) would not feel confident purchasing an EV as their next vehicle, if the ban on petrol and diesel cars came in next week.

From today until Sunday, all 380** residents of the aptly named Fordwich will be some of the first to try out the new Ford Mustang Mach-E as they take part in a unique three day mass test drive around the Kent countryside.

To encourage Fordwich residents to make the switch to electric in the long term, Ford has also partnered with British Gas to install a public charging point in the town. British Gas is Ford’s exclusive home charging installation service provider and has delivered electric vehicle charging points to around 50 Ford dealerships across the UK and Ireland. 

Charging is frequently cited as a critical concern and barrier to EVs, with those in small towns (63%) and the countryside (74%) saying that there aren’t enough charging points. The charging point will be situated at The Fordwich Arms, a local gastropub, and will be available for residents to use from today.

"What a fantastic way to get people to try out an electric vehicle. We are so proud of our town and preservation is something that is incredibly important to us so we were keen to see how simple it would be to switch over to a more environmentally friendly vehicle. It’s great to see so many people signed up over the next few days and we are thrilled to have a local charging point installed for long term public use."

Philip Lewis, Local Councillor and Mayor of Fordwich

"British Gas is committed to delivering the infrastructure needed for the electrification of all modes of transport. We know that it’s vital that we enable the switch to electric vehicles as quickly as possible and we will continue to work with our partners such as Ford to make this happen all over the UK."

Lauren Vazquez, EV installation engineer at British Gas

The new Ford Mustang Mach-E is available now across UK dealerships. For more information on the new Ford Mustang Mach-E please visit here. To register your interest in a Ford home electric vehicle charger, please visit here.