Road Transport and Casualty Statistics for Devon 2004
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Vehicle Ownership and Travel to Work in Devon
The number of vehicles owned within Devon is increasing by 8,500 per year, and this will continue to have an impact on congestion.
Fig 2.2a - Car ow nership per household 1991 Three or more None 5% Tw o 24% 22%
Vehicle ownership provides an important backdrop to considering traffic flows and public transport requirements. From the 2001 census, trends in ownership can be clearly seen.
Fig 2.1a Total cars ow ned in Devon (excl Torbay and Plymouth) 400 ,000 cars & vans 300 200 100 0 1971 1981 1991 2001
One 49%
Fig 2.1b Devon Car ow nership per 1000 people
(excl To rbay and P lymo uth) 600
Cars per 1000 people
500 400 300 200 100 0
Fig 2.2b - Car ow nership per household 2001 Three or more None 7% 19% Tw o 26%
One 48%
1971
1981
1991
2001
Fig 2.1a shows the significant growth of cars owned in Devon, with an average annual growth of 4.2% per annum in the 1980s, reducing to 3% per annum in the 1990s, or the equivalent of 23 more vehicles each day. By 2001 there were over 370,000 cars owned in Devon, more than double that of thirty years ago. Fig 2.1b shows the growth in car ownership as a proportion of the population, which over the past 10 years has seen an average growth of just under 1% per annum.
Overall 81% of the households in Devon in 2001 have access to a car compared to 76% in 1991
Fig 2.2 gives a comparison of the number of cars owned per household between 1991 and 2001. Not surprisingly, to support the general growth of vehicles in Devon, more households own more cars.
Fig 2.3 - Households w ithout access to a car by district
35
% households w ithout a car
30 25 20 15 10 5 0
1991
2001
Exeter
East Devon
M id Devon
North Devon
South Hams
Teignbridge
Torridge
West Devon
Devon Average
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Road Transport and Casualty Statistics for Devon 2004
Overall 81% of the households in Devon in 2001 have access to a car compared to 76% in 1991. Examining this by district, Exeter has the lowest car ownership with 28% (as shown in Fig 2.3) of households in 2001 not having access to a vehicle, a drop of 5% since 1991. West Devon has the highest car ownership at 86% in 2001, an increase of 4% from 1991.
and less work from home or drive a car to work. North Devon also have a slightly higher than average proportion walking or cycling, and it is likely that these variations are due to the significant conurbations which comprise these
Fig 2.4a Devon travel to work by mode - 1991
Work from home 8.2% Walk 15.1% Other 3.2% Public transport 6.6% Motorcycle etc 2.6%
Whilst vehicle ownership is increasing, nearly 20% of Devon’s households do not have access to a car and are likely to be dependent on public transport or other modes of transport.
The Census provides valuable information about how people normally travel to work, and is another important backdrop to understanding other traffic and transportation data. Fig 2.4 shows the chosen modes of travel to work for people in Devon, in 1991 and 2001. Not surprisingly the majority travel alone in a car or van, and this has not changed significantly over the past ten years, although some that used to be a passenger might now travel alone. The most significant change is that there has been a 50% increase in those that work from home, which equates to nearly 45,000 people in 2001. The proportion of those cycling and using public transport has not really changed, but those using motorcycles or scooter have fallen. The proportion of those walking to work has fallen, although in absolute figures nearly 3,000 more people are walking than 10 years ago.
Cycle 2.3% Passenger in car/van 7.7%
Car / van 54.3%
Total in employment = 270,100
Fig 2.4b Devon travel to work by mode - 2001
Work from home 12.1% Walk 13.9% Cycle 2.3% Passenger in car/van 6.7% Other 1.1%
Public transport 6.5% Motorcycle etc 1.7%
More people are walking to work now than 10 years ago, but it is a smaller proportion of those in employment therefore more initiatives should be developed to encourage more walking to work and school
An analysis of the variation in mode by district shows that the main variation is seen in Exeter where more people catch a bus, walk or cycle,
Car / van 55.7%
Total in employment = 314,267 (16% increase on 1991)
districts.
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