This article deals with passenger transport by road in the regions of Europe, studying the motorisation rate (passenger cars per inhabitant) in the regions and the role public transport vehicles (such as buses, trolleybuses and motor coaches) play. It highlights striking differences in the structure of passenger transport by road between regions in the western parts and in the central and eastern parts of the European Union and examines the stock of freight vehicles in European regions.

Stock of passenger cars, buses and coaches

There are clear differences in the number of passenger cars per inhabitant (known as the ‘motorisation rate’) within the regions of the European Union. The highest regional rate registered in the European Union was 10 times higher than the lowest.

The highest motorisation rate was in Valle d’Aosta in Italy, which was almost 40 % higher than the next highest region (Flevoland in the Netherlands). Eleven of the 20 regions with the highest motorisation rate in 2009 were in Italy. ‘

More passenger cars per inhabitant registered in western European regions

Generally, the figures show an east–west divide in the European Union, with more passenger cars per inhabitant registered in western European regions than in the regions of central and eastern Europe. Exceptions were in Denmark, Ireland and Greece (except the Attiki region around Athens), which had relatively low motorisation rates. In central and eastern Europe, regions with relatively high motorisation rates are found in the Czech Republic, Lithuania and parts of Poland.

The lowest numbers of passenger cars per inhabitant

Within the European Union, the seven regions with the lowest numbers of passenger cars per inhabitant were all in Romania, with the lowest in the Nord-Est region. These were followed by Peloponnisos in Greece, Vychodne Slovensko in Slovakia and Inner London in the United Kingdom.

An economical link

The motorisation rates recorded in the European Union are often linked to economic issues. For instance, the top region, Valle d’Aosta, has especially low petrol prices. A number of regions close to larger cities also have a high number of passenger cars, suggesting a larger number of commuters. Examples of this are Flevoland in the Netherlands, Cheshire in the United Kingdom, Lazio in Italy and Attiki in Greece. Several island regions also have high motorisation rates, including Åland in Finland, Illes Balears in Spain, Sicilia in Italy and Corse in France.

The number of passenger cars per inhabitant is calculated on the basis of the stock of vehicles as of 31 December and population figures as of 1 January the following year.

Public transport numbers

Interestingly, the figures for public transport vehicles such as buses, trolleybuses and motor coaches are in contrast to those for passenger cars per inhabitant. The share of public transport vehicles in the total number of road vehicles for passenger transport also differs clearly between western Europe and central and eastern Europe. The regions in central and eastern Europe record the highest shares of public transport vehicles, which make up a much smaller share in most western European regions.

Out of the 10 European regions with the highest shares of public transport vehicles, five are Romanian, four Bulgarian and the other is Latvian. The highest share is found in Yugoiztochen, the region with the lowest population density in Bulgaria. This is followed by the Sud-Est region in Romania.

The regions in western Europe with the highest shares of public transport vehicles are all found in the United Kingdom. However, there are stark contrasts between these regions: on one hand they are the regions with a low population density, including the Highlands and Islands, West Wales and the Valleys and Cumbria, and on the other hand they are the densely populated urban regions of Inner London and Merseyside.

Generally, the United Kingdom stands out as having high numbers of passenger cars per inhabitant and at the same time a relatively high share of buses, trolleybuses and motor coaches in the total number of passenger road vehicles.

The share of public transport vehicles is calculated per 10 000 passenger road vehicles as of 31 December.

Stock of road freight vehicles

The picture is quite different when looking at road freight vehicles, where no systematic differences can be seen between west and east European regions.

The highest number of registered freight vehicles

The two regions with the highest number of registered freight vehicles are both located on the Mediterranean Sea: Andalucía and Cataluña in Spain. These two regions play a key role in freight transport in the western Mediterranean, with direct ferry connections not only to the Spanish islands, Ceuta and Melilla, but also from Andalucía to Morocco and Algeria and between Cataluña and Italy.

The region with the third highest number of freight vehicles is Lombardia, with its main city Milan, which is one of the key economic centres of Italy. The geographical position of this region also seems to play a key role in the regional need for freight vehicles: Lombardia, located at the heart of international freight corridors between Italy, France, Switzerland and Austria, registers a very high volume of trans-Alpine freight transport.

The other regions registering more than half a million freight vehicles are all economic centres dominated by the national capital or a major city: Île de France (Paris), Comunidad de Madrid, Istanbul, Mazowieckie (Warszawa), Rhône-Alpes (Lyon), Comunidad Valenciana (Valencia), Oberbayern (München) and Etelä-Suomi (Helsinki).

Different factors

The share of freight vehicles out of all road vehicles in a region depends on a number of different factors. These include the regional transport system and its infrastructure for different modes of freight transport, such as the capacity of motorways, railway lines, ports and airports. They also include the economic characteristics of the region, i.e. whether the regional economy is driven by manufacturing or services, and whether the region is located on key European freight corridors.

Huge disparities in the regional structure of vehicle stocks

Reflecting these fundamental differences, there are huge disparities in the regional structure of vehicle stocks. The highest regional share of freight vehicles is found in the Nordjylland region in Denmark (38.6 %). This is more than five times higher than in the region with the lowest share, Inner London in the United Kingdom (7.4 %).

The highest shares of freight vehicles are registered in regions in northern Europe: eight of the 10 regions with the highest shares of freight vehicles are located in Denmark or Finland, indicating a large role for road transport in the freight transport systems of these countries. All three regions with the highest shares are Danish: Nordjylland, Syddanmark, and Midtjylland. Next are four Finnish regions (Åland, Pohjois-Suomi, Itä-Suomi and Länsi-Suomi), two Greek regions (Peloponnisos and Sterea Ellada) and a further Danish region (Sjælland).

At the other end of the scale, five of the 10 EU regions with the lowest shares of freight vehicles in all road vehicles are located in the United Kingdom, with Inner London, Outer London and Merseyside (Liverpool) joining Attika in Greece (Athina) and Liguria in Italy in the top five.

News source:  Eurostat link: article