9309.0 - Motor Vehicle Census, Australia, Mar 2003  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 27/11/2003   
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Capital cities streets ahead with motor vehicle ownership


Almost two-thirds (62%) of Australia's motor vehicle fleet was registered in capital cities at 31 March 2003, according to figures released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

Brisbane (45% of state's fleet) and Hobart (41%) were the only capital cities with fewer vehicles registered in the city than the rest of the state.

Melbourne and Sydney had the largest fleets, both with approximately 2.4 million registered vehicles. There were 1.76 people per vehicle on average in Sydney, compared with 1.47 per vehicle in Melbourne, and 1.51 across Australia.

There were 13.2 million motor vehicles registered in Australia at 31 March 2003, an increase of 2,658,819 (25%) in the 10 years since 1993. Over the same period the population increased by only 2,237,282 (12%). Passenger vehicle numbers (cars, station wagons, etc) increased by 25% over the same period.

More than one-third (36%) of the total Australian vehicle fleet was manufactured in 1990 or earlier. The average age of passenger vehicles was just over 10 years. Campervans were the oldest vehicle type registered, with an average age of almost 19 years.

Vehicles manufactured to use unleaded petrol continued to increase, with almost three-quarters (72%) of the vehicle fleet manufactured to use this fuel type in 2003, compared with 60% in 1999.

There were 64,261 articulated trucks registered in 2003, with almost 34% of these having a gross combination mass of over 60 tonnes. These heavier articulated trucks have increased by 15% since 2002.

Further details are in Motor Vehicle Census (cat. no. 9309.0).