Belgian cars among the EU's youngest
Belgians are big fans of new cars. Figures from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) show that only Luxembourgers prefer to buy a new car sooner than Belgians. The average age of a vehicle on Belgian roads is 7.7 years.
For Luxembourg the figure is 6.2 years. The average European car is 10.7 years old, while in Poland this figure rises to 17.2 years.
The average age for Belgian lorries is higher: 9.8 years. This contrasts with a European average of 11.7 years. The introduction of road charging for lorries is lowering the average age because the charge is more expensive for older, more polluting lorries.
Compared with other EU states Belgium has a high share of diesel cars. The number of hybrid vehicles or those powered by natural gas is lower than the EU average.
Belgium has a high number of vehicles per head of population: 494 vehicles per 1000 inhabitants, but in Luxembourg, Switzerland and Poland there are even more vehicles per head of population.