3rd edition of the Autosolism Barometer: despite the energy crisis, individual car use continues to progress

Despite a context of high inflation and pressure on fuel prices, the average rate of solo driving observed during this period reached 84,7%, an increase of 2,5% compared to the previous autumn (82,6, XNUMX%). Solitary driving is, and therefore remains, a phenomenon that is firmly rooted in everyday French mobility practices.

Tours Métropole Val-de-Loire, the Basque Country Agglomeration Community, Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole, Nouvelle Aquitaine Mobilités and the Nouvelle Aquitaine Region as well as the interdepartmental direction of Atlantic roads have joined forces in this unique study, carried out thanks to the artificial intelligence technologies from Cyclope.ai, on 11 motorways[2], between mid-September and mid-November 2022 – excluding school holidays. The analyzes carried out within the framework of this new edition, on more than 700.000 vehicles, also highlight an average occupancy rate of 1,24 passengers per vehicle, well below the optimum of 1,75 targeted by the National Strategy. Low-Carbon by 2035[3]. The results of this 3rd barometer of solo driving can only alert to the urgency of strengthening the offer of services and infrastructures, as well as services dedicated to carpooling, in particular for home-work journeys, for which the he impact of solo driving is the most deleterious, both in terms of CO2 emissions and time lost in congestion.

Autosolism: a well-established practice in France, and which continues to progress in 2022

While the solo driving rate measured by VINCI Autoroutes and Cyclope.ai in autumn 2021 was 82,6%, it reached an average of 84,7% one year later, on the same scope and under the same driving conditions. observation, despite the sharp increase in energy prices. Thus, of the 14 sites concerned by the measurements carried out as part of the solo driving barometer, only 15,3% of the vehicles analyzed carried at least two people (compared to 17,4% in autumn 2021 and 14,8% in the spring of 2022). As in the two previous editions, the peak of solo driving is observed between 7am and 8am (at 89%) to then decrease, and reach 78% on average at 10am.

At the same time, the average vehicle occupancy rate observed in the context of this new edition is 1,24 passengers/vehicle, varying between 1,02 east of Nantes and 1,35 in Toulon – i.e. an average rate well below the optimum of 1,75 passengers/vehicle set by the National Low-Carbon Strategy by 2035.

For Pierre Coppey, Chairman of VINCI Autoroutes: "This new edition of the autosolism barometer confirms that the French, despite the economic context and the increase in fuel prices, overwhelmingly continue to drive alone in their car on weekdays for their home-to-work journeys, even though the carpooling offers a simple and effective solution to meet not only the economic challenges, but also the congestion of urban areas and the reduction of CO2 emissions. We have the ability to support the territories in their desire to stimulate carpooling and, more generally, shared mobility on the motorway, by multiplying infrastructures such as carpooling parking lots near the motorway network, multimodal exchange hubs or reserved lanes again. So many solutions which, wherever they are deployed, are acclaimed by their users and contribute effectively to decarbonizing the uses of the road - which, it must be remembered, accommodates 87% of the country's journeys. »

Regional disparities which are accentuated over the editions of the barometer

At the regional level, almost all of the sites observed have seen an increase in solo driving compared to the 1st edition of the barometer, carried out in the fall of 2021. These are Ile de France (+12%) and the conurbation of Nantes, both on the A11 (+6,1%) and on the A83 (+6,6%), which show the strongest increases. On the other hand, the phenomenon is experiencing a notable drop in Toulon, which goes from a rate of 81,2% of vehicles carrying only one passenger to 77,4% (i.e. -4,7%). The metropolis of Bordeaux (A10) only experienced a very slight increase between the two periods (+0,4%).

For Amelia Rung, Development Director of VINCI Autoroutes: “The barometer that we have been producing for more than a year represents an objective tool for monitoring the development of solo car sharing in France, but also for evaluating the impact of the solutions tested by certain cities to encourage carpooling on a daily basis. We were thus able, during the 3 successive waves of our barometer, to observe more than 3 million vehicles and to have a reliable vision of solo driving. On the strength of these results, we will be able to determine more precisely the strategic sites on our network where to install future carpooling parking lots. In addition, in collaboration with the interdepartmental direction of Mediterranean roads, we will observe 4 sites which will serve as a reference for reserved lane projects, with a view to developing shared mobility in the Marseille region. »

Find the summary of the 3rd barometer of solo driving on the website www.vinci-autoroutes.com. The next edition will be published in spring 2023; in particular, it will make it possible to assess the first impacts of the National daily carpooling plan in the 11 agglomerations monitored, as well as the reserved lane initiatives deployed at the local level.