Interesting piece here in the Times about the impact of Brexit on the economy, with this as well:
"All aboard the transport bandwagon
For the first time since the Second World War, car ownership has declined for two consecutive years. This could be a blip — supply-chain issues have meant you would struggle to get a new Merc even if you wanted one. But some company bosses are drawing deeper conclusions.
As we report today, after studying the car-buying data, Ikea is moving away from opening new out-of-town behemoth stores to building smaller ones in city centres. Customers will get to these shops by public transport and order for home delivery.
This change is little short of seismic for Ikea. It has built an empire on mass car ownership, much as Facebook did with smartphones. But the canny Swedes worry about missing out on an urban, green generation of younger customers — people who don’t see the point in learning to drive, let alone owning a car big enough for a Billy bookcase.
Private equity investors are also betting on the no-car trend. Train and bus companies have been on the receiving end of a flurry of takeover approaches. Stagecoach and FirstGroup in the UK have been bid for, and Britain’s Basalt Infrastructure has bought Nobina in the Nordics.
This may seem odd, given that Covid lockdowns so recently brought the transport sector to its knees. But private equity — particularly long-term infrastructure funds — sees a bright future. You can see why: local councils, fretting about pollution and congestion, are pushing cars out of cities and state investment in buses is resurgent.
Rail may not offer exciting returns now that companies work under contract for the Department for Transport. But the new system ends the boom-bust cycle of the old franchises and offers a safe, annuity-style income for years to come. That is appealing to funds seeking dependable returns.
The whole sector is set for a wholesale increase in its lowly stock market rating. Schroders, the biggest investor in FirstGroup, gets this and is opposing the takeover bid. It’s right to. Long-suffering shareholders must not sell out cheaply to the private equity tycoons."
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