Rail chaos forces more people to use cars

The chaos on Britain’s railways means motorists are now more reliant on their cars than they were a year ago. The RAC said in its annual report that while car dependency had been dropping steadily since 2012, the latest figures show the UK is more wedded to the car than ever. Anger over failing public transport services is contributing to the rise, it found, with one in four (24 per cent) blaming a deterioration in public transport for using their car more often.

THE chaos on Britain’s railways means motorists are now more reliant on their cars than they were a year ago, a survey found.

The RAC said in its annual report that while car dependency had been dropping steadily since 2012, the latest figures show the UK is more wedded to the car than ever.

Anger over failing public transport services is contributing to the rise, the study found, with one in four (24 per cent) blaming a deterioration in public transport for using their car more often.

It comes after a report by the Office of Rail and Road found that the summer rail timetable chaos was caused by a lack of leadership within the Government and the industry.

The complaints in the survey focused on reliability of services (44 per cent), rising fares (39 per cent) and cuts in services (33 per cent).

Overall, one in three (34 per cent) said they were more reliant on their cars generally than a year ago. In the research, the top reasons people gave for using their cars more were having a greater need to transport family members (34 per cent), having a longer commute (32 per cent) and family and friends having moved further away (27 per cent).

David Bizley, RAC chief engineer, said: “At a time when there is so much effort being put into tackling air quality issues and congestion, it is alarming to see that dependency on the car is actually the highest we have ever seen.”

Department for Transport figures show the number of local bus passenger journeys in England fell by 70million (1.5 per cent) year on year in 2016-17.

Rail passenger journeys during 201718 decreased by 24,000 (1.4 per cent) compared with the previous 12 months, according to Office of Rail and Road statistics.

Punctuality on the rail network is at a 12-year low and commuters face an increase of up to 3.2 per cent in the cost of season tickets from January. Six in 10 (59 per cent) of the 1,808 motorists surveyed by the RAC stated they would use their car less if public transport was better, with only 11 per cent disagreeing with this statement.

Mr Bizley said: “Many people don’t think public transport offers a viable alternative to the car for their needs, especially those living in more rural areas. We need greater investment in public transport so that where feasible, drivers have an alternative to sitting in traffic and contributing to poor air quality and congestion.”

 Car hire companies are charging drivers 13 times more for insurance compared to independent providers, an investigation by consumer group Which? has revealed.

A mystery shop of several firms by the group showed some providers would offer full insurance for just £2 a day, compared with as much as £27. The policies by the independent providers would often offer greater protection, Which? added.