Despite high fuel costs, it is the car that almost every second Gothenburger chooses to use, both for commuting to work and when driving in their spare time.
It is the analysis and technology consulting company WSP that for the third year in a row has studied commuting habits in the three big cities, Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö.
A total of 2,000 people responded, of which 500 were in Gothenburg.
- Our survey shows that almost one in two, 47 percent, of the citizens of Gothenburg commute by car to work, says Björn Öhman.
47 percent commute by car
The Gothenburg region consists of 13 municipalities and it is in that area that car commuting is at 47 percent.
Before the pandemic, that figure was 40 percent.
- If we were to take only the municipality of Gothenburg, we would get a lower share of cars because the opportunity to cycle or take public transport is better in central Gothenburg than in the region as a whole.
Even from a Nordic perspective, Gothenburg is the largest car city.
The proportion of car travelers is higher in Gothenburg compared to the Nordic capitals, Stockholm, Helsinki, Copenhagen and Oslo.
And of those, Copenhagen is at the top with 43 percent who commute by car.
Can you say that Gothenburgers' love for the wheel is proof that public transport is too bad?
- You could also see it that way, and in a way it is actually like that, but I would rather formulate it as that public transport can be better and become an attractive alternative to the car.
More people choose the bicycle
According to the survey, public transport has not recovered after the pandemic but has decreased by 10 to 20 percent.
- Those who have the opportunity to work from home seem to want to continue to do so one day a week, and this obviously has effects on the transport system because it means less travel and that people choose other modes of travel.
At the same time that fewer people choose to take public transport, more and more choose to cycle to and from work.
Both with a regular bike and with an electric bike.