UK Licensed Vehicles: 40 Million as of June 2022

Per the Department for Transport (DfT), 40.0 million vehicles were licensed for use on UK roads as of June 2022 (latest finalized annual data).

Breakdown (2022)

• Cars: 33.1 million (83%)
• LGVs (vans <3.5t): 4.6 million
• HGVs (trucks >3.5t): 0.5 million
• Motorcycles: 1.3 million
• Buses/Coaches: 0.16 million
• Other (agricultural, construction, etc.): 0.3 million

Trends

• Steady growth: +1.5%/yr pre-COVID; dip 2020; recovery 2021–22
• EV share: 2.5% of cars (plug-in), rising fast (~16% new registrations 2022)
• Scrappage: ~1.5M/yr; average car age 8.7 years

Regional Variation

Highest per capita: South East, East of England. Lowest: London (transit, congestion charge, ULEZ).

Data Access

DfT Vehicle Licensing Statistics (quarterly). gov.uk.