Our Cities Will Have Less and Less Traffic, Study Predicts

A new study has found that private car rides in major cities will likely decrease by an average of 10 percent in the next decade – making up less than half of all urban journeys and paving the way to greener transport.

70 percent of the global population is expected to live in cities by 2050, so authorities have been heavily working on transport schemes and innovative ways to share the streets, according to researchers.

“It’s a job for every mayor, for every city government to do something,” says Rolf Kullen, mobility director at research consultancy firm Kantar, which produced the Mobility Futures study based on surveys in 31 cities. “Cities are beginning to understand that you do not build your city around a certain means of transport … You should build your city around the people.”

Sustainable transport will reach a worldwide “tipping point” by 2030, according to the study. Cycling, public transport and walking is expected to make up 49 percent of all city travel, overtaking private cars’ 46 percent estimate within the same time frame.