Trend for falling distance travelled continues after blip, says National Travel Survey

A downward trend in the average distance travelled and number of trips continued last year, according to the National Travel Survey.

The average distance travelled (6,396 miles) was 10% lower than in 2002, and 3% lower than in 2015 but similar to the 2014 figure, the 2016 survey says. The average number of trips per person was around 15 per week, 13% lower than the 2002 figure. Most of the fall in trips has been due to fewer car trips. The survey says that a small increase in the average number of car trips, 62% of total trips, and car trip length were "not significant". Meanwhile the long-term trend for falling numbers of walking trips also continued after a small increase in 2015

Trips on buses in both London and elsewhere continued to fall, the former now 7% lower than 15 years ago, the latter now 23% down. Only surface rail trips continued to increase, and stood at an average of 21 trips per person, per year. Trips for leisure purposes were the only type of trip by reason for travel to be on the increase, and stood just behind shopping trips, just under a fifth of all trips, which accounted for the largest proportion of trips by reason for travel.