Car sales in the European Union rose by 14% in 2023, with more than 10.5 million new registrations, a new report from ACEA, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association has found.
Battery-electric models saw a 37% increase in sales last year across the bloc, and now account for a 15% share of the market, ACEA data showed.
In 2024, the group anticipates a 2.5% increase in car sales, to 10.7 million units, with battery-electric cars expected to account for around 20% of this.
Cars on European roads
The number of cars on European roads stood at 252 million in 2022, a 1% increase on the previous year, ACEA noted in a separate report, Vehicles on European Roads.
Poland boasts the highest number of cars per 1,000 inhabitants, while Latvia has the least.
According to ACEA’s data, while electric vehicles reached an all-time high in 2022, just 1.2% of all cars on EU roads are battery-electric.
In addition, there are more than 30 million vans on EU roads, a 1.5% increase on the previous year, with France boasting the largest number of vans in circulation.
Elsewhere, there are now more than 6.5 million trucks on EU roads, a near-2% increase on the previous year. The average age of the trucks on European roads is 14 years.
In terms of buses, there are more than 720,000 buses on EU roads, with battery-electric buses comprising more than 10% of the total stock in three EU countries – Ireland, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands.
‘The report demonstrates that while legislative targets can help steer change, this is only part of the puzzle for decarbonising road transport,’ the ACEA said in a statement.
‘Europe needs a broad set of framework conditions, such as charging infrastructure and purchase and tax incentives, to stimulate demand for new models and replenish vehicles on Europe’s roads with the cleanest and greenest models.’
