It’s enough to bring on road rage - bumper rise in vehicle numbers revealed

Wednesday 22 June 2016

Red-faced drivers caught in rush hour jams across the Island have now had it confirmed - the numbers of cars on Jersey’s streets are on the up and up.

A Freedom of Information request revealed that figures for total vehicle ownership in the Island have risen a whopping 25% in the last ten years with 124,156 cars, vans, trucks and motorcycles now registered.

That’s a big increase in the last ten years, as the figure in 2005 was just over the six figure mark at 101,583. 

Transport Minister Deputy Eddie Noel said a number of factors are behind the rise, including population growth, but schemes are being introduced to try and bring vehicle ownership down. 

He said: “There is nothing we can do about the population increasing as that obviously affects vehicles numbers, but the car to cycle scheme which we launched a couple of weeks ago has been a huge success. We are offering £300 grants awards the cost of an e-bike and so far 180 people have taken it up. I had a family this week saying they are selling their car and all are now using the car to cycle scheme, which is exactly what we want and great to hear. It is all about changing people’s behaviour and trying to get more onto buses and on bikes.

“I believe we have a very good bus service in Jersey and we are always thinking of ways of improving it and getting more people to give it a go.” 

Since 2005 ownership of all types of vehicles has grown every year at roughly the same rate, as there were 115,198 registered in 2010. 

Current figures show that of the total amount - 124,156 - 88,000 are cars, 14,000 motorcycles, 12,000 light commercial vehicles, 746 taxes, buses and coaches, 1,232 light 4 by 4’s, and 43 works trucks. 

The figures do not represent how many vehicles are on the roads at any one time, but they are a clear indication that numbers are still rising. 

Hybrid cars - a combination of electric and petrol - are on the increase as there were none on Jersey’s roads in 2006, one, a Honda Civic, in 2007, but there are now 77 registered. 

Fully electric cars peaked in 2012 at 47, but have since declined to just 35, despite incentives such as cheaper parking. 

The new car market has been in steady decline as a total of 7,190 new cars were brought in 2005, but that figure has dropped to only 3,499 in 2014. 

Deputy Noel said: “We are forever trying to find ways of chipping away at the number of vehicles registered on our roads, but it is difficult as car ownership on the Island is relatively cheap and parking is also relatively low, compared to some parts of the United Kingdom. People may complain that parking is expensive on Jersey, but, in comparison, actually it is not.

“The culture of using a vehicle takes a long time to change, but we are always seeking to improve the various options available to people.”