Traffic congestion could get worse as Australia's vehicle volume reaches new high

If you’ve noticed more traffic on the road this year, it’s probably because the number of registered vehicles in Australia has swelled to nearly 20 million.

According to census data published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, there are now 19.5 million registered vehicles on national roads, a 1.7 per cent increase over 2018’s result and an almost 25 per cent from 2009’s 15.7 million figure.

Each Australian state and territory has seen an increase in vehicle volume year on year, barring the Northern Territory which dropped 0.5 per cent, with Tasmania the state with the largest increase of 2.6 per cent.

Victoria and Queensland were the next biggest growers, with 2.2 per cent each, while the ACT, NSW, South Australia and Western Australia saw jumps of 2.1, 1.5, 1.4 and 0.6 per cent respectively to their volume.

As for fuel types, petrol-powered vehicles still dominate with 73.6 per cent of the national fleet, a drop of 1.0 per cent compared to 2018, while diesel vehicles make up 24.6 per cent, a 1.2 per cent increase.

Interestingly, that leaves 1.8 per cent of vehicles that fall in the ‘Other’ fuel-type category that includes electric and LPG vehicles, and translates to around 351,000 vehicles on Australian roads.

Of the nine vehicle categories listed, the light rigid trucks segment grew the most with a 5.7 per cent increase, although passenger vehicles account for 74.4 per cent (+1.2%) of the nation’s car parc.

Data also revealed the average age of an Australian vehicle is now 10.2 years, slightly up from 2015-2018’s 10.1-year figure.

How many more cars do you think Australia’s current infrastructure can handle? Tell us what you think in the comments below.