Bicycles extend sales lead on cars – record year hits nearly 1.3 million

Yeehar! etc


*****

'CPF Media Release 4/1/07' (http://www.rideabike.com.au)

Bicycles extend sales lead on cars – record year hits nearly 1.3
million

Bicycles have extended their sales lead over cars for 2006, with
Australian bike sales hitting a new record of almost 1.3 million while
car sales declined from the previous year.

Bicycle sales in Australia totalled 1,273,781 for their fifth straight
year of million-plus sales, more than 32 per cent ahead of the motor
vehicle sales total of 962,521.

In the seventh successive year in which bicycles have outsold cars,
bikes have extended their lead to more than 300,000 – a sales edge
which comfortably exceeds the total sales of vehicle market leader
Toyota.

The Cycling Promotion Fund (CPF), Australia’s peak bicycle promotional
body, said sales had increased by nine per cent as more and more
Australians turned to cycling to boost their fitness and cut their
petrol bills.

CPF spokesman Ian Christie said Australians were using bikes not just
for recreation but increasingly as their preferred form of day-to-day
transport.

“There is an emerging trend towards people using bikes as their
official company-supplied vehicle in place of the traditional company
car,” he said.

“Some of Australia’s biggest corporations now have bicycle fleets, and
when you add in government organisations, we now know of at least 50
organisations which operate fleets of bikes.

“Although the company bicycle is a long way from taking over from the
company car, it’s an important trend when you consider that nearly half
of all cars sold are to company fleets.”

Mr Christie said record sales were across all market segments from
everyday recreational bikes and children’s bikes right through to
high-end road and competition bicycles.

Year___ Motor vehicles *__ Bicycles **_____ Bikes’ lead
2000___787,100_________ 926,924 ________ + 17%
2001___ 772,681_________ 774,938 ________ +0.3 %
2002___ 824,309________ 1,109,736 _______ + 34 %
2003___ 909,811________ 1,003,844________ + 10 %
2004___ 955,229________ 1,247,991________ + 31 %
2005___ 988,269________ 1,168,601________ + 18 %
2006___ 962,521________ 1,273,781***_____ + 32 %

* VFACTS figures.
** Australian Customs figures.
*** End-of-year estimate.


SIX THINGS YOU MIGHT KNOW ABOUT CYCLING

- In 2004 transport accounted for almost 14% of Australia’s net
emissions with 76.2 megatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent – 23%
higher than the 1990 level.

- In the year 2000, 101 million bicycles were produced globally versus
41 million cars.

- 20% of Australians travel 5km or less to work or study – an ideal
cycling distance.

- 80% of all trips to work or study in Australia are made by car
(reference ABS 4602.0 March 2006).

- Approx 3.3 million Australians are obese, with another 5.6million
overweight (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2003).

- 19-23% of Australian children and adolescents are either overweight
or obese.


--
cfsmtb