Taking into account the economic challenges they currently face, 43% of Portuguese indicated that they have reduced the frequency of their car use in response to the rising cost of living. In addition, 27% say they have begun to use public transportation more frequently and 10% assume they have postponed servicing their car, even when it is necessary.
That’s the conclusion of Liberty Mutual’s Car Savings and Summer Vacations study, in partnership with Kantar and Red C, which collected responses from 503 Portuguese, 804 Spaniards and 510 Irish.
In this survey, the Portuguese’s travel options this year were also analysed. When asked how they plan to travel during their summer holidays, 36% of Portuguese say they will use the car to their holiday destination, which is two hours or more away. Already 29% refer to other means of transport (plane / boat / train / bus). On the other hand, 17% said they will not travel this summer.
Two-thirds (67%) of Portuguese who travel a medium to long distance by car during these holidays choose this option for the freedom and flexibility it offers. 39% of respondents explained that the choice of a car is due to the fact that such transport allows making last-minute decisions.
Regarding those who stated that their summer vacation plans included flying, using public transportation or a short car trip, 28% indicated that this was due to the fact that they could not get to their holiday destination by car and 23% said that their long car trips were too expensive. Sustainability remains a concern with 12% of respondents indicating that public transport is more sustainable than car travel.
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