New figures released yesterday by Sustainable Energy Ireland suggest that the average annual mileage of Irish cars is lower than commonly thought - although energy use for transport here grew by 151 per cent between 1990 and 2005.
In researching private car usage, SEI's energy policy statistical support unit calculated that the average annual mileage of Irish cars in 2005 was 16,894 kilometres (10,498 miles), based on actual milometer readings from National Car Test data.
Anecdotally, the average mileage of a private car in Ireland was thought to be around 19,000km (12,000 miles), while one estimate by the authors of Transport Investment and Economic Development, published in 2000, put it as high as 24,000km (15,000 miles).
However, even the lower average figure cited by SEI puts the annual mileage of Irish cars ahead of Britain and far ahead of France and Germany. The latest figure would put us on par with the US, which is probably the most car-dependent country in the world.
SEI found that petrol cars had an average annual mileage of 15,969 kilometres (9,923 miles) last year while diesel cars had a higher figure of 23,817 km (14,799 miles) - and the mileage they racked up rose by 23 per cent between 2001 and 2005.
While average mileage per car may be lower than previously believed, the overall distance travelled is increasing due to long-distance commuting, and this is contributing to the spectacular rise in overall energy consumption by the transport sector.