One in every five car owners are planning to get rid of their car over the coming years, new research has found.
The rising cost of running a car is among the big drivers, the survey discovered, with almost two thirds citing this as an influence on their decision.
However, just over three quarters said that grocery shopping remains the biggest barrier to them doing away with their wheels.
A little over a third claimed they use their car every day to get to and from work.
Overall, a fifth of car users said they would prefer to use their car less, but 70% said they would be more likely to get rid of their car if public transport was better.
The research was carried out among a national representative sample of 1,201 adults in Ireland by Amárach Research, on behalf of car sharing company, GoCar.
Among those who said they would like to give up their vehicle, 41% said they would like to cycle or walk more, while a little over a third said they would like to reduce their carbon footprint.
The study also revealed that 21% of respondents have two or more cars, with 28% of those having children.
Around half said they need an additional car for transporting family, while more than a third need it for work purposes.
“We have the potential to remove nearly 1,000,000 cars from Irish roads,” said Paul McNeice, Head of Country for Europcar Mobility Group.
“The GoCar Index identifies the over reliance on private cars in Ireland, but we all know this comes at a price – the cost of running a car, the environmental impact, as well as increasing congestion.”
“The NTA recently highlighted that simple changes such as walking and cycling could take 680,000 cars off the road every day.”
But the survey also revealed a degree of hesitancy about letting a car go, with more than half citing it as needed for getting to work and one in ten saying others rely on them.
16% said they do feel guilty about the environmental impacts of car ownership and a fifth said they would like to use their car less but are not familiar with the alternatives.
Only around a quarter knew about car-sharing services available here.
Article Source – A fifth of motorists are planning to get rid of their car, survey finds – RTE