Dutch car fleet to break 8 million barrier

On 1 January this year, 7.9 million passenger cars were registered in the Netherlands, versus more than 5 million twenty-five years ago.  The bulk, 7.1 million cars, are privately owned. The car ownership rate per 1,000 residents across the Netherlands equals 420.

Urban municipalities have lowest rate per 1,000 residents

The number of cars per 1,000 residents increased by 18 percent over the period 2000-2013 to 420 in 2013 and remained unchanged in 2014.

Number of cars per 1,000 residents

Typically, the number of cars per 1,000 residents is lower in urbanised municipalities. The number of cars per 1,000 residents ranges from 247 in Amsterdam to 572 in the municipality of Blaricum. The four major Dutch cities Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht belong to the ten municipalities with the fewest cars per 1,000 residents.  

Number of cars per 1,000 residents by municipality (2014)

Car ownership rate per 1,000 residents low among young people

The public transport network is more extensive and efficient in urbanised areas, which might partly accounts for the lower number of cars per 1,000 residents in those areas. The proportion of young people (aged 18 to 30) also tends to be higher in urbanised areas and the lowest car ownership rate, i.e. 290 per 1,000 is recorded in this age category.

Frank Leenders and Doreen Ewalds