Could traffic get any worse?
There are three more vehicles on UK roads than there were 5 years ago, and the total is nearing 40 million total vehicles. Since 2012, the average growth in number of registered vehicles has been 610 thousand per year. Have the road systems and extra roads been built to deal with the constant increase in traffic, we don’t think so…
Diesel sales will continue to fall
At the end of October, diesel car sales have declined nearly 30% YoY- now making up only a quarter of total cars sold. However, it is important to note that there is a big difference between old diesel engines and modern diesel which actually has to meet the Euro 6 standards, so it emits less CO2 than a modern petrol engine. This means cleaner air quality, making modern diesels a part of the solution now, rather than diesel previously being part of the issue. Diesel has such a bad name now, partially due to the VW Dieselgate scandal, that no one is listening about diesel anymore.
Used electric vehicles will get more expensive
Last year new car sales suffered but used car sales maintain steady growth. This along with the steep and increasing price of new EV’s has led to used EV prices rising. Some of the most popular used EVs saw some of their model’s prices rise by an average of 18% YoY. The same is expected this year, with more and more people tempted to join the EV movement for less than buying a more expensive newer model.
Electric vehicles will remain a tiny percentage of car sales
Many people think 2020 is the year our roads become filled with EVs, but we aren’t quite at that stage yet. Many more brands are bringing out EVs this year, with better mile ranges to attract a great pool of mainstream customers. However, there are still many more standard vehicles available, as well as a much larger number of standard used vehicle compared used EVs – the majority of people buy used cars as opposed to buying new a new car. While the electric car is still an emerging concept, the regular-type cars are still extremely sophisticated and constantly getting better. By the end of November 2019, the EV market was worth just 1.5% of the market. 2020 will most definitely see EVs greatest growth so far and is hard to estimate at this time.
Sources:
https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/features/autocars-guide-what-will-happen-2020
https://www.racfoundation.org/motoring-faqs/mobility#a1
