Reacting to the National Travel Statistics from the Department for Transport, RAC senior policy officer Rod Dennis said: “It’s abundantly clear that the private car remains the mode of choice for journeys over a mile in length, despite the fact that the proportion of households with access to a car has remained broadly flat for the last 50 years.

“And while the average distance travelled by bus has crept up slightly this year, it’s still the case that these figures are down hugely compared to the start of the century – reinforcing the fact that many local bus services, where they still exist, simply aren’t working for people.

“The findings give the new government some food for thought as it tries to balance the needs of all road users, whether they are bus riders, cyclists, pedestrians or drivers. In the case of the latter, it’s clear many people feel they have no viable alternatives to the car for the trips they need to make.”