Car use increases despite 2030 target to slash kilometres travelled by 20%

Scotland has seen an increase in car travel – despite ministers having set a target to slash the number of kilometres travelled by motorists by 20% by the end of this decade.

The latest figures from Transport Scotland show the overall number of kilometres travelled by car rose from just under 34.4 billion in 2022-23 to almost 35.4 billion in 2023-24 – an increase of 3%.

The rise comes despite increases in the number of Scots using public transport – with more people travelling by both bus and train.

The rise in car kilometres was recorded as the number of motor vehicles licensed in Scotland increased to a record high of 3.1 million in 2023 – with ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEVs) making up 2.9% of all vehicles by the end of that year, up from 2.1% at the end of 2022.

While the Scottish Government has set the target of reducing car kilometres by 20% by 2030 as part of efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions, watchdogs at Audit Scotland warned in January this is “unlikely” to be met.

Auditor General for Scotland Stephen Boyle said then that there had been a “lack of leadership” around what was an “ambitious and very challenging target”.

The latest figures show an overall rise in road traffic, with the distance travelled by all motor vehicles on Scotland’s roads amounting to 48 billion kilometres in 2023.

This was an increase of 2% on the previous year, but was slightly below the 48.3 billion vehicle kilometres travelled in 2019.

The 2024 Scottish Transport Statistics also show more journeys being made on all forms of public transport.

There was a 15% increase in public transport use over the year, with 451 million journeys made by either bus, rail, air, or ferry in 2023-24 – up from 392 million in 2022-23.

Bus remained the most popular form of public transport, accounting for almost three-quarters (74%) of all such journeys over the year.

Bus journeys increased by 12% from 297 million in 2023-24 to 334 million in 2023-24 – however this was still 7% lower than in 2019-20, prior to the Covid pandemic.

ScotRail passengers made 81.2 million trips in 2023-24, up by more than quarter (27%) from 63.7 million train journeys the previous year.

The number of air journeys increased from 21.5 million to 26 million over the period, with ferry journeys rising from 9.3 million to 9.7 million.

However the figures show a decrease in the number of kilometres travelled by bicycle, with journeys by bike down from 422 million kilometres in 2022-23 to 403 million kilometres in 2023-23 – a fall of 5%.

Scottish Green MSP Mark Ruskell said: “The continued growth of public transport to pre-pandemic levels is good news, but it is clear that we badly need to reduce the number of cars on our roads.

“The best way to do that is to ensure there are alternatives and that trains and buses are always affordable and accessible options.”

He argued that if the Government cuts fares and invests more in public transport, it could help tackle the climate crisis and the cost of living.

Mr Ruskell insisted: “When you invest in public transport, people use it; we’ve seen this time and again.

“If we make trains and buses more accessible, then more people will feel able to leave their cars at home.”