Cycling miles travelled down and car journeys up according to latest government stats
Posted on in Business News , Cycles News
Road Traffic Estimates data published by the Department for Transport has shown a 7.3% decline in cycling miles travelled and a 2.2% rise in car journeys between 2022 and 2023. It's estimated that Britons travelled 330.8 billion miles by car in 2023, as opposed to just 3.6 billion miles by bike.
The Institute for Public Policy Research, an independent charity “working towards a fairer, greener, and more prosperous society", says that over a third of people "want the opportunity to walk, wheel or cycle more than they currently do", adding that it thinks the government "needs a new transport strategy that reflects both the public’s desire to travel differently, and the pressing environmental and social imperatives to reduce car miles travelled."
Dr Maya Singer Hobbs, a senior research fellow at the IPPR, commented: “The increase in car journeys and decrease in bus and bicycle journeys shows the UK is travelling in the wrong direction. The UK is sleepwalking towards a traffic-heavy future, with all the economic, social and environmental challenges that brings.”
“More cars on the road means more pollution, worse air quality and rising emissions. But people will continue to be reliant on their cars unless the government acts to fix the dire state of public transport around the country. Until people have safe, affordable and reliable options, progress will continue to be stuck in reverse gear.”
The IPPR also commented a month ago on the government's “shocking lack of progress” on active travel, after data from Sport England's Active Lives Survey highlighted a stark contrast in levels of physical activity between affluent and less affluent areas. It cited more figures from the National Travel Survey that shown the average distance cycled per person hadn't changed since 2019.
Back in September 2023, Cycling UK also expressed dismay at findings that shown cycling traffic had dropped by 5% from the previous year, blaming the UK Government's "flawed" decision to slash the active travel budget and roll back support for low traffic neighbourhoods.