.jpeg%3Fwidth%3D1200%26height%3D800%26crop%3D1200%3A800&w=3840&q=100)
Environmental fears grow as average age of UK cars reaches record high
Motoring research charity the RAC Foundation, which conducted the research, said drivers are benefiting from the improved 'build-quality' of modern cars, but this is 'bad news for the environment ' as it is slowing the switch to electric models.
It found the average age of cars licensed in the UK at the end of last year was nine years and 10 months.
This is up from seven years and five months at the end of 2015.
Petrol cars have the oldest average age by fuel type at 10 years and four months, following by diesels at 10 years and one month.
The average plug-in hybrid was three years and four months old while battery electric cars were typically just two years and six months old.
A total of nearly 34 million cars were licensed at the end of last year.
Of these, about two in five (40.7%) were at least 10 years old, compared with 32.7% at the end of 2015.
Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, said: 'On the plus side, for motorists, the design and build-quality of modern cars means they are looking good and running reliably for far longer.
'The days of them rusting away before your eyes are well and truly behind us.
'Even a 20-year-old car with a full service history can be a good bet for someone seeking a bargain buy that still looks up to date.
'The bad news for the environment is that the overall ageing of the fleet means the replacement of fossil-fuelled cars by those with very low or zero emissions is not happening as quickly as policy-makers hoped.
'To hit the Climate Change Committee 's 2030 emission reduction targets without a cut in the number of miles driven, we believe that by the end of the decade there will need to be a 10-fold increase in the 1.3 million or so battery electric cars on the road at the close of 2024.
'That is going to require a huge push.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
9 minutes ago
- BBC News
High quality land 'should be for food' says Daniel Zeichner
Farming minister Daniel Zeichner says he believes "high quality land" should be used for producing food, not for house building or solar farms. Speaking to BBC Radio Cambridgeshire as part of Farmwatch, the Cambridge MP said there was a balance to be struck between energy supply, housing and food security. Cambridge and the immediate surrounding area is expected to grow significantly over the next two decades. There are also a number of solar farms planned for the has led to questions about whether there will be less land for growing food, but Zeichner said: "I genuinely believe we can find ways to get the right balance, whilst allowing young people to have a home". Plans to build hundreds of thousands of new homes along the Cambridge to Oxford growth corridor were announced by the previous details were given by the current Labour government in such the National Farmers' Union say they have many concerns about the possibility of farmland being used. However, Zeichner said that in his view "high quality agricultural land" should "by and large be used to produce food". Regarding solar farms, he said it was important that the country became more self-sufficient in meeting its energy needs, which would help bring down energy prices. A number of plans for solar farms in Cambridgeshire are being considered. These include Kingsway solar farm, near Balsham, and East Park Solar farm on the Cambridgeshire/Bedfordshire project, such as Sunnica, near Newmarket, have already been granted planning permission. Zeichner said he understood "local anxieties" but that even if the most ambitious amount of solar generation was achieved across the country, it would cover "less than 1% of land mass".He said he believed that was "less than the number of golf course we currently have". Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Reuters
9 minutes ago
- Reuters
Morning Bid: Split Bank of England set to cut rates
A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from Kevin Buckland There's little doubt in the market's mind that the Bank of England will cut interest rates later today by another quarter point, making it five cuts in the past year. But a tricky balance between a slowing jobs market and nagging inflation worries could see the board split three ways, with two of the nine members potentially pushing for no change, while two others may lobby for a half-point reduction. The board's language will also be key, with a focus on whether the message of "gradual and careful" policy easing remains in place. Any signs of an extended pause would be a blow for Finance Minister Rachel Reeves and Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who have promised to speed up Britain's slow economic growth. Away from the UK, the market's broad focus falls squarely on another central bank with some similar problems. The U.S. Federal Reserve has seen the macroeconomic data take a distinct downward turn over the past week - particularly the labour market - just days after the board opted to forgo a rate cut. But with worries about simmering inflationary forces as a result of President Donald Trump's bellicose tariff campaign also showing up in the data, Fed Chair Jerome Powell's wait-and-see stance also finds some support. Hanging over the Fed's debate - which saw two Trump-chosen Fed governors dissent in last week's decision - are the president's persistent and aggressive calls to cut rates, often framed with name-calling and threats to fire Powell before his chairmanship expires in May. The market's eyes are on Trump's short list of four possible replacements, and more immediately, his pick to fill a governor role abruptly vacated by Adriana Kugler. Meanwhile, Trump's barrage of tariff threats continues unabated, with a 100% duty on semiconductor imports and additional levies on India for importing Russian oil among the latest. Trump plans to talk to Russian President Vladimir Putin next week about ending the war in Ukraine, which is buoying the euro while injecting uncertainty into the outlook for crude oil. Overall though, the market has become more inured to the constant tariff sabre-rattling and Japan's Topix index (.TOPX), opens new tab marched to a record peak while tech-heavy Taiwan shares (.TWII), opens new tab leapt more than 2% to the highest in over a year. Pan-European STOXX 50 futures are pointing 0.2% higher, with Wall Street futures also up by about the same amount. A strong U.S. earnings season is one reason for that. Coming up are Eli Lilly, ConocoPhillips and Warner Bros Discovery, among many others. Europe has a busy day of earnings reports as well, with Allianz, Siemens and Merck among them. On the data front, Germany has trade figures and industrial production numbers, while Britain gets a reading on house prices. Key developments that could influence markets on Thursday: -BoE policy decision -UK Halifax house prices (July) -German exports, imports, industrial production (all June) Trying to keep up with the latest tariff news? Our new daily news digest offers a rundown of the top market-moving headlines impacting global trade. Sign up for Tariff Watch here.
Top Gear
12 minutes ago
- Top Gear
Five cars reimagined in retro form by artificial intelligence
Advertisement Subtle one, this. BMC's original '59 Mini had an estate version, the Clubman, but it was a stretched two-door. The Countryman, technically a sub-compact crossover, didn't appear until 2010. So what would an Alec Issigonis-designed Countryman have looked like back in the early Sixties? Well, wonder no more – weird doors aside, you can see how good it might have looked. Images: @automotiveai Advertisement - Page continues below Here's where AI has to work hard – the Sixties were a time of innovation and Big News from the USA, with some exceptional designs. And yet Tesla as a corporate entity didn't even exist until 2003, and the Model 3 wasn't born until 2017. The AI decided that the Model 3 of the latter Sixties was still a compact executive car, but actually a two-door worthy of a poster. If only. You might like Another one that looks real. The Range Rover Sport appeared in 2005 as a mid-sized luxury SUV. The first Range Rover appeared in 1969, and was two-door only until '81, so an imagineered '74 RRS has ended up looking largely like a smaller Range Rover Classic with fat wheels and no rear doorhandles. Advertisement - Page continues below If someone distilled the Model T of 1908, boiled it down to the stylistic components and then rehydrated them for this year, this is what the result might look like. Although this seems to be a modern interpretation of a mid-Twenties pickup version of the Model T – sometimes called the Runabout – and the world's first pickup truck. The Cayenne caused controversy when it was launched in 2002 – an SUV from a maker of sports cars? The horror! And yet it largely bolstered the company's future against the slings and arrows of outrageous market forces. But the early Eighties saw an imaginary Cayenne that borrowed heavily from the 911's stylings, yet weirdly ended up with shades of a Seventies Honda Civic. Or is that just us? See more on Concept
