Number of cars on the road in the United Kingdom (UK) 2000-2020

There were around 32.7 million passenger cars in operation in the United Kingdom in 2020. UK roads have become busier since experiencing the most significant decline in the aftermath of the 2008-09 financial crisis. It remains to be seen whether the coronavirus crisis will cause a similar dent in the graph.

Car ownership per household

The majority of car owners in the UK have one car available to them. As of 2018, 53 percent of motorists had one vehicle in their household. Only one percent of respondents owned five cars or more.

Road safety

The number of car drivers involved in reported road accidents in Great Britain fell to a record-low of just under 160,000 in 2019. The age group of under 16 year olds witnessed a sharp drop in the number of traffic-related fatalities in 2019. That said, all other age groups reported an increase in fatalities between 2018 and 2019.