The Impact of Low Traffic Neighbourhoods and Other Active Travel Interventions on Vehicle Ownership: Findings from the Outer London Mini-Holland Programme

Abstract

We use vehicle registration data to examine whether active travel interventions in Outer London between 2015-2019 affected motor vehicle ownership, compared to other neighbourhoods. We find statistically significant reductions in car/van ownership in areas introducing ‘low traffic neighbourhoods’ (-6%, or 23 cars/vans per 1000 adults, after two years). We also find statistically significant but smaller reductions in areas introducing other infrastructure such as cycle tracks (-2%, or 7 cars/vans per 1000 adults, after 2 years). These effects increased after adjusting for the changing age profile of the intervention areas. Our findings indicate that active travel interventions can reduce motor-vehicle ownership, particularly interventions involving low traffic neighbourhoods.