Tesla hopes to play an “important” role for motorists in Oxford with the city's potential Zero Emission Zone (ZEZ) expansion.

The automotive company will open its first site in the region in the coming weeks at a technology park in Bicester.

The company said it hopes to be “particularly important” in supporting residents to travel more freely through Oxford’s ZEZ zones.

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Oxford city centre had a small test pilot ZEZ become operational in February 2022.

A proposal is now being worked on by Oxfordshire County Council for expanding the ZEZ.

If approved the expansion would go live in 2026, according to the council’s website. 

Oxford Mail:

At the moment, all petrol and diesel vehicles, including hybrids, incur a daily charge if they are driven in the zone between 7am and 7pm unless they have a 100 per cent discount or exemption.

Alise Greeves, Tesla’s area sales and delivery manager for the Home Counties, said: “Expanding Tesla into Bicester will allow more people in the Greater Oxfordshire area to drive on zero emissions.

“Everything we do at Tesla is in support of our mission to accelerate the UK’s transition to sustainable energy.

“With 200,000 cars on UK roads, we're able to bring clean transportation to zero-emission zones like Oxfordshire and create a direct impact".

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However, earlier this week the automotive industry issued renewed pleas for electric car purchase incentives after new figures showed a decline in the vehicles’ market share.

EV manufacturer Tesla reported a fall in global sales of nearly nine per cent during the first three months of the year compared with the same period in 2023.

Ian Plummer, commercial director at online vehicle marketplace Auto Trader, said: “Sales of electric vehicles are still rising, despite the gloom from Tesla.

“While the fleet side of the market is driving the growth, more needs to be done to stimulate electric vehicle demand among private buyers where affordability remains a barrier."

The new Tesla site will open on Saturday, April 13 in Charles Shoulder Way at Catalyst Bicester near the Holiday Inn hotel.

Oxford Mail: The new Tesla site in Bicester

The opening is described as an “open family-friendly event” with a chance to meet Tesla technicians and get behind the wheel of cars on sale.

The opening event is scheduled to run from 11am to 4pm and anyone over the age of 21 can schedule a test drive on Tesla’s website.

This new location comes just a week after Tesla announced it had hit a milestone of 200,000 vehicles in the UK, with almost one-fifth of all electric vehicles on UK roads being a Tesla.

The 24,000-square-foot site will join Catalyst Bicester's growing technology park and allow visitors to service, and test drive Tesla products in the same location.

The location is only 20 minutes from Redbridge Park and Ride which has Tesla chargers on site.