CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Infrastructure

British road traffic increased by record 2.2% last year

(2 posts)
  • Started 8 years ago by crowriver
  • Latest reply from paulmilne

  1. crowriver
    Member

    "Britain’s roads were at their busiest ever in 2015, when total traffic overtook the pre-financial crisis peak.

    Figures released by the Department for Transport show that vehicles travelled 317.8bn miles on British roads last year, edging past the previous record from 2007. Traffic grew 2.2% over the year, with vans accounting for most of the growth.

    The growing coverage of online shopping and home delivery appears to have brought a surge in light goods vehicles on to the road, up 6% in a year and 10% on rural roads. The data showed that 72% more vans were on the roads than in 1995.

    Congestion has pushed average speeds lower, with vehicles on local A roads in the morning peak averaging 23.4mph across the country, and just 15mph on London A-roads.

    The DfT said the higher traffic reflected growth in the UK economy, while lower fuel prices may also have contributed."

    UK figures. Presumably Scottish detailed figures will be out later in the year?

    http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/feb/11/british-road-traffic-increased-record-22-per-cent-last-year

    Posted 8 years ago #
  2. paulmilne
    Member

    I expect lower petrol prices have something to do with this, but it's a catch-22 for motorists, isn't it? Lower petrol prices means you can drive more cheaply, which means more congestion on the road leading to more petrol consumption in slower start-stop driving.

    Posted 8 years ago #

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