Push for Aussies to ditch cars amid $17 billion problem

Aussies are being urged to give up their cars as the country grapples with a $17 billion problem.

Aussies are being urged to give up their cars, with a new report claiming congestion and delays on the roads are costing the country more than $17 billion each year.

The eye-watering figure is expected to almost double to $30 billion by 2030 in Australia – which boasts one of the world’s highest rates of private car ownership.

Now, a campaign is urging Aussies to give up their cars, saying reducing ownership and use of cars in major cities will ease congestion, air pollution, carbon emissions and other issues.

But a lack of suitable public transport options makes it something many drivers find it impossible to fathom.

Australia has one of the highest rates of private car ownership in the world. Picture: iStock

Research commissioned by Uber found at least 2.5 million cars in Australia are under-utilised.

Of those, 2.1 million are in urban areas, and most are second cars.

With most of a car’s costs fixed, such as financing, insurance, and depreciation, a car is likely to be under-utilised if it travels under 5,000km per year.

Overall, it found cars around the country sit idle 95 per cent of the time – with parking taking up a substantial amount of public space in metropolitan areas.

Uber research found at least 2.5 million cars in Australia are under-utilised. Picture: iStock

To help move towards a car-light future, Uber has announced plans to run a large-scale study, which will see over 2,400 Sydneysiders give up their cars for three weeks to understand the barriers and opportunities to car-light living.

It comes after the company ran a smaller trial last year, which saw 58 Aussies give up their cars for a month in favour of other modes of transport.

The study found people needed convenient access to four alternative modes of high-quality transport if they were to be successful in ditching their cars.

“We know there’s still a lot of work that has to happen – across industries and across the public and private sectors – to achieve Australia’s net-zero ambitions. And while the transition to EVs is essential, we believe that if all we do is electrify every car on Australian roads in the coming decades, we’ll have missed a key piece of the puzzle,” said Emma Foley, Managing Director of Uber Australia & New Zealand.

“An emissions-free future depends on a fundamental rethinking of how people move through our cities, and especially in Australia, that means not defaulting to the private car for every trip.”

The news was announced overnight at Uber’s second annual climate event in London, Go-Get Zero, where the company unveiled s number of glocal and local initiatives aimed at eliminating emissions by 2040.

Other changes included transitioning Uber Green to a fully-electric product and making electric vehicles more accessible for Uber driver partners.

Uber said the announcement reinforces its ongoing commitment to electrification in the Australian market.

With over 5,400 EV drivers currently on Uber, Aussies have taken over 2.3 million EV trips equating to over 2,400 zero-emissions rides each day.