The circulating car fleet of Europe has grown by1.2% compared to 2020, and they are almost 250 million cars on the roads. The association of European car manufacturers (ACEA) has published the new report on cars circulating on the roads of the European Union: it is an inevitably clear report that also helps us understand at what point the diffusion of new electric cars is . The photograph taken shows, however, that the cars on the roads are getting older and only a few countries reach an acceptable threshold of zero-emission vehicles.
According to the data released, in the 2021 the cars present in Europe were 567 cars for every 1,000 inhabitants. On the highest step of the podium is Luxembourg, which happens to be the nation with the highest density of cars in Europe with 698 cars for every 1,000 inhabitants. Having the lowest car density is Romania with a number of cars equal to 396 per 1,000 inhabitants. The situation regarding theItalywith 672 cars per 1000 inhabitants, demonstrates once again how thecar be the preferred medium by the citizens of the beautiful country. Italians prefer the private car for their travels, as an alternative to public transport or rental.
As mentioned at the beginning, the ACEA report shows growth in the car fleet in 2021, with well 249,563,035 cars on the streets of European cities. In fact, all countries show an increase in the diffusion of cars, apart from Slovenia which is the only exception if we consider its -4.3%. For 2021 the percentage relating toItaly attests with a +0.3% compared to 2020 with a total of 39,822,723 cars on the roads.
But what is the average age of cars on the road in the European Union? Acea data also allow us to answer this important question. L’middle age of cars is of 12 years, a fact that therefore demonstrates that the cars on the road are rather dated and the diffusion of hybrid and electric vehicles is still struggling. To have the oldest cars are Greece and Estonia, countries where you get to have fleets in circulation with an age of 17 years. For Italy, the figure relating to the average age of cars is 12.2 years, nothing to do with the fleet in circulation in Luxembourg which stands out for being the youngest (7.6 years).
Finally, there is also a detailed picture of the engines: in 2021 electric and plug-in they only represented the1.5% of the total car park. Only countries like the Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark had a share above 2%. Although the ban for cars equipped with internal combustion engines is getting closer and closer, petrol and diesel models still dominate with a share of 51.1% and 41.9%.
