UK van sales down 4.6% in October
The light commercial vehicle (LCV) market declined marginally by -4.6%, in October, with 27,420 vans registered according to the latest figures released today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). Despite this representing the second consecutive month of decline – albeit not as steep a fall as in September – the sector remains […]
Question marks over LNG-powered truck sustainability claims
Trucks powered by liquified natural gas (LNG) are no better for the climate than conventional diesel trucks and pollute the air far more than manufacturers claim, new independent tests have indicated. Transport & Environment (T&E), which commissioned the on-road tests, says only zero-emissions trucks like battery electric vehicles should be supported by lawmakers. It has called […]
SMMT calls for vehicle decarbonisation plans before government bans
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has called on government to work with industry to develop a plan that facilitates the transition to zero emission HGVs, before it commits an end of sale date for conventionally fuelled trucks. All of Europe’s major truck manufacturers have agreed that new HGVs will be fossil fuel-free […]
Low emissions car registrations hit record share in Europe
According to data from 26 European markets, new car registrations slowed in July, recording a year-on-year decline of 24% as total volume decreased from 1.27 million units to 967,830 – But low emission cars took a greater share of sales than ever before. Similar results were recorded in July 2012, when the market registered 966,090 […]
UK’s drivers want investment for better road surfaces
The quality of road surfaces on England’s motorways and major ‘A’ roads is drivers’ top priority for improvement, according to new research from Transport Focus. The independent watchdog spoke to over 5,600 drivers to understand their top priorities for improvement to England’s major roads. As National Highways (formerly Highways England) prepares its longer term plans the watchdog […]
Business travel down as virtual meetings save on journeys
There has been a large reduction in domestic business travel since the pandemic began, according to the the results of a Department for Transport survey – only 35% of businesses that took part said they had continued to conduct business travel during the pandemic. Ipsos MORI conducted the online survey of UK business decision-makers and found:- […]
The WhichEV View: JATO market data confirms massive increase in EV registrations in Europe
By James Morris, Editor, WhichEV For more than 30 years, Jato Dynamics has provided precision data on changes within the car market and their reports always make for interesting reading. Its latest update includes a summary of new vehicle registrations from across Europe for June 2021. With the pandemic seemingly well behind us now, the patterns are […]
RAC forecasts ‘unprecedented summer’ on the UK roads as staycation fever hits
This summer will see ‘unprecedented’ levels of traffic on UK roads due to drivers planning in excess of an estimated 29m staycations – 16m of these in the school holidays alone – according to a study of 2,500 drivers conducted by RAC Breakdown. The number of drivers making firm staycation bookings has surged 20% since April, […]
Motorparc: Total vehicles on UK roads falls to 40.35m
Vehicle numbers on UK roads fell to 40,350,714 in 2020, according to Motorparc data released today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), the first time the total number has fallen since the global financial crisis of 2009. As the pandemic stifled new vehicle uptake, the average age of cars on UK roads […]
Record numbers of vans on UK roads
Commercial vehicles now account for 13.1% of all vehicles on the road in Britain – the highest recorded this century, according to figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). SMMT’s annual automotive census has revealed that, as of the end of 2020, there were 4,604,861 vans, 589,445 trucks, and 73,608 buses […]
