New car sales hit reverse gear

BOTH new-car sales and the volume of traffic on our roads are down significantly compared to this time last year.

The number of new private cars licensed in the first seven months of the year fell by more than 31,000 vehicles compared to a year earlier.

Meanwhile, traffic counter figures from selected sites analysed by the Central Statistics Office show since lockdown eased, the volume of cars for the first week of this month was 12.6% lower in regional locations and 16.3% lower in Dublin than the same week in 2019.

However, the volume of lorries measured at selected sites in Dublin since June 21 has risen on the same period in 2019. The CSO also found the impact of

Covid-19 restrictions on rail journeys was more significant than that on journeys by bus or Luas.

Covid-19 restrictions have had a dramatic impact on airport passenger numbers also, it found in its latest transport bulletin published today.

This bulletin – compiled using data collected by the Transport Infrastructure Ireland, the Road Safety Authority, the National Transport Authority and the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport – shows that since the easing of Covid-19 restrictions, the volume of cars is returning to pre-pandemic levels.

However, public transport volumes have been slow to recover, it observed.

Society of the Irish Motor Industry director general Brian Cooke said car sales in July, traditionally the second busiest of the year with the release of the ‘2’ plate, were a disappointment.

‘While the July registration period did bring much needed activity back to showrooms, new-car sales continue to disappoint, with another monthly fall,’ he said. ‘Covid-19 on the back of Brexit and an already falling new car market since 2016, now sees new-car sales back to recession levels, down 30% year to date. Looking further into the numbers, new-car sales will fall for the fourth consecutive year, with a staggering 44% reduction over the last four years.’