Cars account for most long journeys

It would seem that cars remain the most popular method for travelling long distances the UK.

Research published today by the Independent Transport Commission shows that four out of five journeys of over 50 miles are made by car and that cars are still the dominant means of domestic long distance travel.

The research also shows that whilst journeys of over 50 miles in Britain account for only 3% of all mechanised trips they nevertheless account for nearly one third of all the mileage travelled and that on average Britons make 20 long distance trips every year, averaging about 100 miles per trip.

The research goes on to show that rail, coach and air travel account only for 12%, 6% and 4% of all journeys respectively.

Among the conclusions reached by the report is the fact that if Britain emerges strongly from the current recession then demand for long distance travel by road, rail and air could grow vigorously. Given the preference for road travel, this means that congestion would worsen in the absence of investment or, for instance, road charging.