A summary of the most interesting automotive news articles covering everything from changes in VED rates, to environmental news, driver behaviour and more.
UK roads can be the safest in the world over the next decade if the same high return investment in safe road design is made as other leading nations, according to a new report.
Pump prices have soared in the last 12 months meaning that the average UK petrol car now costs 89p a day more in fuel compared to the same time last year, according to the AA.
Motor manufacturers are to have a quota system imposed by the Government for the remainder of the scrappage scheme after it was disclosed that more than 3/4 of the £400 million budget has been used
Motorists have been warned to expect petrol and diesel price rises of as much as15p a litre this year, as new taxes and increasing market costs are passed on at the pumps.
More drivers are using hand-held mobile phones than before tougher penalties were introduced two years ago, according to research by TRL (Transport Research Laboratory).
UK cities should have more 20mph speed zones, as they have cut road injuries by over 40% in London, according to a new study by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
A new generation of average speed cameras will police 20mph zones in residential areas for the first time and track cars for up to 15 miles on main roads.
The Netherlands is to scrap all road and vehicle taxes and replace them with a road pricing regime in a move that will be closely monitored by other countries, including the UK.
The cost of motoring for Britain’s 30 million drivers has fallen 5% (£123) in 2009 to £2,219 (2008: £2,342), according to RAC’s annual Cost of Motoring Index.
Peer pressure, not wearing seatbelts and poor training are all major factors in the numbers of young drivers killed on the nation’s roads, according to new research by insurance giant Aviva.
A step change is required in the pace of UK emissions reduction via road tolls, strict speed limit enforcement and a major drive to encourage the more rapid uptake of electric vehicles.
The European Commission has adopted a decision setting out the essential technical specifications and requirements needed to launch a European Electronic Toll Service (EETS).
A future Conservative Government will ‘end the relentless expansion of fixed speed cameras’ as part of a radical plan to improve road safety and cut congestion.
Police forces have been criticised for accumulating thousands of pounds worth of repair bills, to be paid with taxpayers’ money, after officers repeatedly filled their vehicles with the wrong fuel.
The Government is to pump a further £100 million into the vehicle scrappage scheme to build on the success of the initiative in boosting new model demand.
The UK’s scrappage incentive scheme could end next week as the existing funding budget is exhausted, according to a warning from consultants at Deloitte.
The car of the future will be impossible to crash, capable of ‘speaking’ to other vehicles and be in constant contact with overhead satellites and roadside sensors.
The Highways Agency is reminding drivers to take extra care when driving through roadworks, both for their own safety and that of thousands of workers who keep the roads safe and maintained.
Cyclists are to be permitted to ride the wrong way along one-way streets under a law change intended to encourage more people to give up their cars or use them less.
RAC is calling for the focus of safety campaigns to be widened to include all potential in-car distractions, such as adjusting the radio or heating and air-conditioning controls.
In the last three years European sales of sat navs have nearly doubled to almost 14 million units, while UK sales of road atlases through bookshops fell in value by 17 per cent.
Cycle lanes can make roads more dangerous for cyclists because they encourage motorists to drive closer when overtaking bicycles, according to a study conducted by Leeds and Bolton universities.
Lord Mandelson has ruled out extending the vehicle scrappage scheme in a move likely to anger motor industry leaders who say that the programme is crucial to Britain’s broader economic recovery.
With the new 59 number plates now hitting the streets, it has left a number of people wondering what comes after 09/59 when the number plate changes again in March 2010.
The report into the collapse of MG Rover will highlight ‘questionable’ business practices by the so-called Phoenix Four who were directors of the business.
Petrol prices have smashed through the average 105p-a-litre mark for the first time in 10 months - and motorists are bracing themselves for more increases to come.
Boris Johnson is to help create Britain’s first ‘hydrogen highway’, using a scheme to promote zero-emissioned cars modelled on one introduced in California by Arnold Schwartzenegger.
Business Secretary Lord Mandelson has ruled out extending the car and van scrappage scheme under which owners who qualify can obtain a £2,000 discount on a new vehicle.
The Government is planning to bring civil proceedings to disqualify the four directors of collapsed car company MG Rover from being company directors in the future.
Motorists face a rise in fuel prices of around 5p a litre as plans to end the temporary cut in VAT come in months after a scheduled 2p fuel duty increase.
The Highways Agency has launched its summer ‘Bag it Bin it’ campaign, with the support of the AA, the RAC Foundation and the Institute of Advanced Motorists.
The Government has given the green light for Nottingham City Council to become the first authority in the country to introduce a workplace parking levy (WPL).
Insurance claims in which drivers crash deliberately have increased by 70% in the past year because people are trying to make money during the recession, insurers say.
Traffic jams caused by utility companies digging up roads could be cut drastically under a scheme designed to give councils more power over when work is carried out.
Drivers are 23 times more likely to crash when they text at the wheel, according to a new study by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute in the United States.
The majority of drivers support Government plans for tougher driving tests, but they want even more action to stem the toll of young motorists killed and injured in road crashes, according to Brake.
Work to widen key sections of the M25 as part of a £6.2 bn contract to improve and maintain England’s busiest motorway - creating thousands of new jobs - was officially started on Wednesday
Motorists spurred to switch from petrol to diesel cars because the pump price difference is currently shrinking should think long and hard before doing so, warns the AA.
The Serious Fraud Office is to investigate the 2005 collapse of MG Rover after a long-running Government inquiry concluded there were grounds for a criminal investigation.
Almost one-in-three motorists want six-month driving bans to be imposed on those using mobile phones while behind the wheel, according to a survey by Autonational Rescue.
Motorists caught without a seatbelt or using illegal number plates face on-the-spot fines of £60 in a major road safety crackdown launched by the Government.
Single-carriageway A-roads are rated Britain’s most dangerous and 58% of A-roads and 25% of motorways fail to rate as safe, according to the latest survey by the Road Safety Foundation.
A million new speed limit signs could crop up on rural roads as an ‘unplanned consequence’ of the Government’s new road safety strategy, according to analysis by the Campaign to Protect Rural England.
Drivers will be able to sleep, read, eat, work or watch television behind the wheel of their cars at 70mph on the motorway, using technology being developed by scientists.
Labour is still failing to live up to its promise to make Britain’s roads ‘the safest in the world’, according to a report by the Institute of Advanced Motorists.
Smoking should be completely banned in cars, according to campaigners who are particularly concerned that children are being exposed to second-hand smoke from adults smoking while driving.
Britain’s ‘greenest’ car is the Honda Insight with the ‘least green’ car being the 8.0 litre Dodge SRT-10, according to the Environmental Transport Association (ETA).
Road deaths are a far greater global ‘pandemic’ danger then swine flu but campaigns targeted at young drivers can make a difference, according to AA president Edmund King.
Mirrors that reveal cyclists and pedestrians hidden in a lorry’s blind spot will be attached to traffic lights to try to prevent hundreds of deaths and serious injuries.
A campaign has been launched calling for the Government to announce and fund a large-scale shared taxi project, ‘TaxiPlus’, to link rural communities with the ‘outside world’.
An electric car with a removable battery pack that can be changed in just 45 seconds is being hailed as the next major step towards a zero-emission transport network.
An alarming number of drivers do not know the meaning of common road signs, according to new research by insurer Direct Line and road safety charity Brake.
Accelerating average UK petrol prices have risen to 97.68p a litre, helped by a 1.3p spurt in the past week, according to the AA’s latest fuel price report.
Motorists face roadside drug tests under plans being drawn up by ministers to create a new offence of driving under the influence of illegal substances.
The Government must make Britain’s roads safer for vulnerable users such as pedestrians and cyclists, according to a new report by the National Audit Office.
Traffic lights at up to seven junctions in Ealing in London are to be turned off for six months in Britain’s first test of the theory that removing them will cure congestion.
The owners of 1.5m vehicles are more likely to take advantage of the Government’s new vehicle scrappage incentive, due to their car ownership characteristics, according to analysis from Experian
The newly announced ‘new for old’ vehicle scrappage scheme designed to stimulate UK new car sales could be more popular than the Government has calculated, according to Institute for Fiscal Studies.
UK drivers are watching with a growing sense of disbelief as the cost of petrol pushes through 95p a litre, rising faster than increases during last spring’s fuel price surge, according to the AA.
Seven out of ten drivers have driven dangerously because they were making phone calls, sending texts or fiddling with the radio, research by insurer Swiftcover reveals.
Subsidies of up to £5,000 to motorists buying electric and plug-in hybrid cars will be available as the central plank of a £250 million Government scheme to bring ‘greener’ motoring to Britain.
Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling now seems certain to launch a scrappage scheme in the Budget next Wednesday (April 22) in a bid to kick-start demand for cars.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown has promised an environmentally friendly Budget on April 22 to kick start a ‘green recovery’ - including the mass introduction of electric cars on Britain’s roads.
London Mayor Boris Johnson has outlined a series of major initiatives to achieve at least 100,000 electric vehicles on the capital’s streets as soon as possible, equating to 5% of total vehicles.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown is expected to take a final decision in the next 48 hours about whether to agree to announce a vehicle scrappage scheme in next Wednesday’s (April 22) Budget.
Motorists will be able to drive straight through a series of green traffic lights along a single stretch of road following a relaxation of the Government’s traffic flow rules.
The Highways Agency is helping people travelling on the roads this Easter by suspending or completing more than 73 per cent of roadwork schemes on its motorways and major A roads.
A pan-European project to track the location, speed and direction of travel of every vehicle has the backing of the Department for Transport, car manufacturers and the telecoms industry.
Fuel duty and VAT on petrol and diesel will rise by nearly 2p per litre from today (April 1) despite an eleventh hour call from motoring groups to get the Government to freeze prices.
Carmakers are looking at installing digital radios in all their UK vehicles to make ‘economies of scale’ following the French government’s decision to switch off the FM airwaves by 2013.
Countryside campaigners fear it will be ‘bulldozing as usual’ as the English regional bodies release their proposals to focus Government funding on ‘high-carbon’ road building.
Plans to give drivers £2,000 to trade in their old car for a new one will help to prop up foreign car plants, but do very little to protect British jobs, according to Professor Garel Rhys.
Lighting will be turned off late at night on hundreds of miles of motorway despite an admission from the Highways Agency that a small increase in crashes is the likely result.
Car owner loyalty to the dealer they bought their vehicle from is extremely limited, according to a survey by Experian, the global information services company.
Britain suffers from the most widespread levels of dangerous traffic fumes in Europe, posing a serious risk to health, according to a report from DEFRA
Construction of the UK’s longest road tunnel under land, near Hindhead in Surrey, is a step closer to completion after the tunnel excavations from the north and south met deep under the Surrey Hills.
Thousands more motorists will lose their licences under plans to give police the power to issue penalty points for careless driving without evidence being heard in court.
A European Union inquiry has been called for after the latest AA Fuel Price Report found that the price of petrol in the UK has risen by more than 1.5 times the current rate of inflation
Honda’s worldwide, total hybrid sales hit the 300,000 mark earlier this month, and will soon be bolstered by the new Insight, which goes on sale in April.
Retail Motor Industry Federation director Sue Robinson is to meet ministers on February 24 to discuss the possible launch of a vehicle scrappage scheme in the UK.
London Mayor Boris Johnson has revealed plans to scrap the third phase of the capital’s Low Emission Zone because of the detrimental impact it will have on London’s small businesses.
Motorists in Hull are the most likely to suffer car theft while those in Swindon enjoy the lowest rates of vehicle crime, according to a survey by Endsleigh Insurance.
The Highways Agency, which is responsible for motorways and major A roads in England, says it ‘performed well’ as it battled to keep traffic moving in the Arctic conditions.
Cameras that detect a motorist’s average speed will be deployed at all entry and exit points to residential areas as an alternative to road humps and chicanes.
More than 125,000 crashes were caused last year by motorists with colds and flu, as new scientific research reveals the serious impact of driver illness on accident rates.
The number of speeding prosecutions and fines has increased sevenfold in ten years, according to figures obtained under the Freedom of Information Act.
An £11m scheme to improve public transport between Solihull, Birmingham International Airport (BIA) and the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) has been announced by Transport Minister Paul Clark.
More than 9.000 drivers were arrested by police as part of a nationwide operation to tackle the menace of drink and drug driving over the festive period.
Tough new powers to tackle uninsured drivers who cost law-abiding motorists £400 million each year have been announced by Road Safety Minister Jim Fitzpatrick.
The Department for Transport is planning two modifications to the MoT test and to increase fess from April subject to a consultation process that runs until February 27.
Car insurance premiums could soar by a record 20% this year due to a rising tide of fraud and the increasing cost of personal injury claims, insurers are warning.
Drivers of the most polluting vehicles will see a 25% rise in parking charges if Richmond Council in southwest London approves an extension of its CO2-related parking policy.
An 18-month trial will allow motorcycles, mopeds, scooters and tricycles - but not those with sidecars - to travel in most red route bus lanes in London.
The Highways Agency is suspending or completing more than two-thirds of roadworks on its motorways and major A roads in time for the traditional Christmas getaway.
Speeding must become as big a social taboo as smoking and drink-driving, according to road safety experts if death and injury on the nation’s roads are to be further reduced.
New drivers are putting their lives at risk by buying cheap cars and not having basic safety checks carried out, according to research by insurance giant Norwich Union.
Motorists are to be able to legally display national flags on their vehicle number plates after the Government solved a seven-year problem by removing Northern Ireland from the legislation.
Workplace parking charges are back on the Government’s agenda with the publication of a DfT consultation document on regulations that would allow local councils to push ahead with schemes.
Two-thirds of drivers have told the AA that stress from Christmas shopping in town starts before they even get out of the car, according to the AA Populus survey of 7,380 drivers.
Half of drivers believe that drug-driving is a more common and serious problem than drink-driving, according to a poll of 17,500 AA Populus panel members.
The majority of road crashes occur in the winter, which is why the Driving Standards Agency is advising newly-qualified motorists to take a course aimed at producing safer drivers.
Fleet managers are being warned that if their drivers use a biofuel that has recently gone on sale on forecourts at supermarket group Morrisons they could invalidate warranties.
Britain’s motorway network celebrates its 50th anniversary today - from a slow and modest start, the UK network has never managed to catch up with the rest of Europe and now ranks amongst the poorest
Older drivers are 6 times more likely to be fined for speeding than 10 years ago, according to a study which also reveals that younger drivers have adapted far better to the wider use of speed cameras
Electric vehicles have a major role to play in reducing transport emissions and thereby contributing to a reduction in greenhouse gases by at least 34% by 2020.
Campaigners against Manchester’s proposed congestion charge scheme encouraged by London Mayor Boris Johnson’s decision to scrap the western extension of the capital’s congestion charging zone.
An extra £1 billion will be invested in major transport projects next year to stimulate the economy by accelerating Government plans to cut congestion and significantly increase rail capacity.
A European Union-wide agreement on lowering average CO2 emissions by 18% between 2012 and 2015 has moved a step closer as Italy has dropped its objections to the plan.
A group of hydrogen fuel filling stations is being created in the midlands to help engineers assess the performance and efficiency of hydrogen cars in real-world conditions.
The fuel price war is continuing with pump prices dropping below 90p for a litre of unleaded petrol and experts predicting that further falls are on the way.
A raft of new measures have been unveiled by the Government to tackle the menace of dangerous drivers in a bid to reduce the number of deaths and injuries on Britain’s roads.
Asda has prompted another round of forecourt fuel price cuts with a litre of unleaded petrol now costing just over 90p - the lowest figure for 18 months.
More than £120 million has been lost in the last year by drivers who broke down after playing ‘roadside roulette’ and gambling wrongly that they wouldn’t need breakdown cover, according to the AA.
A Labour peer is to be prosecuted for dangerous driving after someone allegedly sent a text message from his mobile phone shortly before a fatal motorway crash.
Average fuel prices have fallen by a record amount over the past month and at a rate faster than the record rises during the summer, according to the AA.
The former bosses of MG Rover, who made an estimated £40 million from the business, have stalled the publication of a government report into their conduct.
Fuel stations are under growing pressure to slash pump prices and have been accused of ripping off drivers as they fail to fall in line with the tumbling wholesale cost of crude oil.
The Government is threatening to withhold £1.5 billion of public funding for public transport in Manchester unless the city agrees to become a guinea pig for pay-as-you-drive road pricing.
As many as 73,000 disqualified novice drivers could have returned to the road illegally over the past decade, according to figures obtained by Liberal Democrat MP Norman Baker
The ‘speedy’ and ‘thorough inquiry’ into the April 2005 collapse of vehicle manufacturer MG Rover continues three-and-half-years after the Government investigation was launched.
The Government’s much anticipated Pre-Budget Report will be published on Monday, November 24 when Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling makes his statement to the House of Commons.
The European Commission has launched a proposal to introduce labelling that will identify the most energy efficient and best performing tyres by the end of 2012.
Prosecutors have been told to take a tougher line on motorists involved in fatal road crashes after a review found that some drivers are escaping the severest punishment.
The Government will perform a U-turn in the Pre-Budget Report expected later this month when it announces a delay in controversial Vehicle Excise Duty increases on millions of cars.
New style of winter treatment on England’s motorways and major A roads as the Highways Agency replaces its yellow gritter' and invests £45 million in a new fleet to tackle snow and ice.
Officials have come up with a solution to the menace of ‘middle-lane hog’ – new electronic signs on motorways that tell drivers: ‘Don’t hog the middle lane’ and ‘keep left unless overtaking’.
Young women aged 18-24 are least likely to have roadside breakdown cover to help them get mobile again this winter. RAC data shows that with four in 10 (40%) risk being stranded at the roadside.
Supermarket group Asda has cut the price of petrol again to 92.9p a litre - a fall of 2p. However, the price of a litre of diesel remains unchanged at 106.9p.
High fuel prices helped to save up to 140 lives this year because motorists slowed down and drove less aggressively to save money, according to an analysis by the AA.
Safety barriers are to be removed from hundreds of busy streets after a trial found that using railings to separate pedestrians and vehicles made roads more dangerous.
A driver from Cumbria who collided with Highways Agency traffic officers while trying to breach their rolling road block has been jailed for nearly five months.
Hundreds of volunteer drivers are being recruited to take part in Government-funded road pricing trials that could result in charges of up to £1.30 a mile on the most congested roads.
One of the world’s largest car surveys has named BMW as most reliable brand, with the 3 Series named the most reliable car in a historic win over Japanese brands.
Proposals to track every motorist by satellite have been dismissed as ‘hopelessly over the top’ by the former head of technology at the Department for Transport.
Changes in working patterns have reduced death and serious injury on the roads at peak times on Fridays, according to analysis by AA road safety experts for Workwise UK’s ‘Commute Smart Week’.
One life could be saved each day if all drivers and passengers belted up every time they got in a car, according to a newly launched Government campaign.
Cameras that monitor motorists’ average speed through roadworks on one of Britain’s busiest motorways will have raised almost £1 million in fines by the time they are removed next month.
Government road pricing plans appear to have moved into the fast lane following the recent Cabinet reshuffle and appointment of Geoff Hoon as Transport Secretary.
The first sharp bite of winter has seen the first cars spirited away by thieves, who are on the look-out for vehicles being warmed through with the engine running.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown has told BP to cut pump prices after the company reported record profits for the third quarter of 2008 of £6.4 billion, up 148%.
A ban on novice drivers carrying teenage passengers in their cars and a lower drink-drive limit are among headline recommendations from MPs for cutting deaths and injuries on Britain's roads.
An online survey by Autotrader has revealed 1.6 million UK drivers have traded in their large vehicles for smaller, more fuel efficient cars with more drivers expected to follow their lead.
Petrol prices could fall below 90p a litre within weeks as the cost of oil continues to fall despite last week’s attempt by oil producers to shore up the price by cutting production.
Last-minute changes to the blueprint for a Greater Manchester congestion charge has been outlined in a bid to defuse business opposition only days before an important vote by council leaders.
Charging points for electric cars are to be installed in thousands of car parks and on streets as part of a Government plan to convert drivers from petrol and diesel to electricity.
A judge has called for elderly motorists to undergo driving checks after an infirm 86-year-old man drove into three people on a pavement after mistaking the accelerator for the brake.
Motorists have been warned to expect the price of petrol and diesel to rise by up to 5p a litre after members of Opec, the oil producers’ cartel, agreed to cut daily production by 5%.
London’s first biogas fuelling station has opened in Camden to support the commercial trial of a new Iveco Daily street cleaning vehicle powered by liquid biomethane.
Audi has invented a device which will allow motorists to avoid red lights. The gadget, called Travolution, tells drivers what speed to go in order to arrive at traffic lights when they are green.
Supermarket group Morrisons has prompted another round of forecourt price cuts across the UK, with unleaded petrol pump prices dropping by 2p a litre to 97.9p and diesel prices to 109.9p.
Drivers will be breathalysed at random and those close to the limit will stand a much greater chance of being convicted under plans to give police new powers to tackle drink-driving.
Essex police is installing devices with recorded messages next to fuel caps in their cars after the force spent £42,000 on vehicle repairs following ‘misfuelling’ incidents.
One in five councils is switching off street lights at night and dozens more are expected to follow suit to save money – but there are fears that the result will be a rise in serious road crashes, cri
Autogas, the leading automotive liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) supplier, has found that almost 50% of motorists have considered converting their car to run on LPG because of the rising cost of fuel.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown has urged petrol retailers to cut prices below £1 a litre, and warned that there was still ‘too much variation in price across the country’.
A safety device which prevents drivers using mobile phones by automatically intercepting calls and text messages when they are moving has been unveiled.
Swindon is set to become the first town in the country to scrap speed cameras because the local borough council believes they are a ‘blatant tax on the motorist’.
Almost half of motorists admit that in-car gadgets distract them from the road with radios, CDs and DVD players the items most likely to divert attention.
Motorway toll lanes that drivers could pay to use to avoid congestion could be tested within two years after the Government sent a team to the United States to study the scheme.
The first signs of a respite for drivers has come with a continuing fall in the price of crude oil, which should be reflected in tumbling petrol and diesel prices at the pumps.
A new generation of speed cameras that will monitor drivers’ average speed on all routes across a wide areas are to be deployed on hundreds of roads next year.
Britain’s cyclists need to be extra vigilant next time they take their bike on the streets, according to the latest findings from the AA Driving School.
Europe’s vehicle manufacturers will come under renewed pressure to reduce the carbon dioxide emissions of their vehicle models if an amendment to a European Union global warming regulation is carried.
Thousands of parents and grandparents are unwittingly committing insurance fraud and putting their children at risk of fines and penalty points as they prepare to drive off to university.
Roadside speed indicators designed to persuade drivers to slow down are being widely ignored, a study by TRL (Transport Research Laboratory) has shown.
The UK Government has changed its mind about reducing the drink-drive limit from 80 to 50 milligrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood, despite evidence that it would save 65 lives a year.
Learner drivers could be spared the ordeal of having to convince a driving examiner of their ability to reverse around a corner or parallel park under plans being considered by the Conservatives.
Compact and smaller cars designed for a more frugal world are taking pride of place at the Paris Motor Show, which opened yesterday (Thursday, October 2).
One in six drivers is breaking child car seat laws, putting millions of youngsters at risk of injury or death, according to a survey by insurance company LV.
Drivers will be banned after two convictions if they exceed the speed limit by 15 mph in urban areas or 25 mph on motorways, under a shake-up of road safety laws.
Using workplace parking charges to raise money for local councils will be the subject of a conference attended by Local Government Minister John Healey today.
UK showrooms and garages are missing out on an estimated £17.4 million each week because of the poor treatment received by female customers, according to new research.
The European Parliament environment committee has voted in favour of supporting the European Commission’s proposal that average CO2 emissions from new cars should not exceed 130 g/km by 2012.
Expensive ‘superfuels’ don’t save drivers money, improve a car’s performance, or save the environment, according to consumer magazine Which? Car, despite bold contrary promises by suppliers.
European Union plans for all-day running lights to come into force for new cars from February 2011 will result in drivers’ fuel bills rising by up to £160 a year, it has been claimed.
The introduction of 24-hour alcohol licences in 2005 has led to sharp rises in ‘morning after’ drink-driving, according to figures from the Department for Transport in its report into road casualties
Businesses and employees around the country are being warned that yet another tax will be coming their way if the Government gives the go-ahead for a controversial levy on workplace parking.
A legal bid to avoid charging VAT at council-run car parks has run into trouble, with the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruling that tax authorities were right to block the move.
Mercedes-Benz is introducing a powerful new lithium-ion battery that has 10 times the power of traditional lead batteries, while saving drivers 20% on fuel efficiency.
A $25 a barrel surge in crude oil prices - the largest single one-day rise - is likely to send UK petrol and diesel prices soaring again following recent pump price cuts.
Foreign lorry drivers are eight times more likely to be involved in a serious or fatal crash than their British counterparts, according to Government figures.
A road-user charging scheme has accelerated a step nearer with the Department for Transport naming seven companies that will help to shape the technology used in pilot trials.
Motoring groups across Europe are making a concerted protest over the failure of oil giants to slash prices at the pumps as the cost of crude plummets.
The police are to expand a car surveillance operation that will allow them to record and store details of millions of daily journeys for up to five years.
New solutions to solve the crisis facing access to transport in rural communities have been called for in a series of five ‘'think-pieces’ published by the Commission for Rural Communities (CRC).
Drivers and their passengers have been reminded of the importance of wearing seat belts with the Government considering a doubling of the penalty for not wearing one.
A regulation forcing carmakers to cut average CO2 emissions to 130 g/km for their model ranges, or face hefty fines, has been declared illegal by the European Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee.
Speed cameras that track drivers over longer distances by measuring average speed are to be deployed on motorways, at accident black spots and in residential areas.
Pressure is growing for fuel retailers to cut pump prices amid increasing criticism that they are not falling in line with world oil prices, which are at their lowest in months.
Drivers caught speeding abroad must no longer be able to avoid prosecution, say MEPs, who have overwhelmingly voted to back a report that will make cross border law enforcement easier.
Speculation is mounting that the European Union will scrap the existing Block Exemption that governs relations between vehicle manufacturers and dealers.
Liberal Democrat MP Lembit Opik led a convoy of electric scooters at speeds of up to 12.5 mph to promote a campaign to allow their use in public places.
Hydrogen-powered cars could become a more visible site on Europe’s roads following European Parliament backing for a European Commission proposal to simplify the approval of hydrogen-powered vehicles.
The European Parliament’s industry committee is pushing for vehicle manufacturers to be given an additional three years to hit the proposed European Union (EU)-wide 120 g/km ceiling for CO2 emissions
Autogas, the leading automotive liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) supplier, is predicting that the number of LPG conversions will more than double this year.
Thieves are targeting 4x4s and sawing off their catalytic converters, which contain precious metal, and selling them on to metal traders for up to £200.
Derbyshire Road Safety Partnership is introducing two unmarked speed cameras in mocked up workman’s vans despite clear Government advice that cameras should be visible.
Tata Motors will move production of the world's cheapest car from a new factory in India's West Bengal state if violent protests by local farmers - forced to sell their land for the site - continue...
Land Rover has pledged that the future of the company is safe despite almost 300 of its workers being transferred to production at sister marque Jaguar.
Motorists who kill whilst avoidably distracted at the wheel - including using a mobile phone, drinking and eating - will face up to five years in prison under new careless driving laws
Left-handers are all right when it comes to learning to drive, according to a study commissioned by the AA Driving School to mark ‘Left-Handers Day 2008’ today (Wednesday, August 13).
Despite record petrol prices, soaring car tax and rising congestion, British holidaymakers are rejecting planes and trains in favour of their cars for this year’s summer getaway
Lotus Engineering has announced a collaboration with Queen’s University Belfast and Jaguar Cars to develop an engine which maximises fuel efficiency when running on renewable fuels.
The London congestion charge is losing its battle against gridlock after it was revealed that the capital’s streets are as gridlocked now as they were before the levy was introduced
Drivers are being reminded of the problems that litter can cause on motorways and major A roads as the Highways Agency’s summer ‘Bag it! and Bin it!’ campaign against roadside litter gets underway
Cars that warn motorists about crashes before they happen and ‘intelligent’ roads that direct drivers to empty parking spaces are being developed in Britain
Government plans to increase car tax for ‘gas-guzzling’ vehicles should be bolder to increase their environmental impact and encourage a greater switch to low-emission models
Insurance group Admiral says that rates in the motor market will need to rise by up to 20% over the next two to three years for it to become profitable again
Road deaths are rising sharply in many parts of Britain - with huge regional variations - although the total number of people killed in crashes has dipped to an 80-year low
Mr Brown visited the British International Motor Show on Tuesday and held talks with motor industry bosses and representatives of electricity generating companies.
This comes less than a week after Transport Secretary Ruth Kelly announced a £6 billion investment programme to improve and make better use of motorways and other key roads.
Morrisons and Asda announced they were slashing up to 4p off a litre of fuel. Morrisons cut petrol from an average of 117.92p to 113.93p a litre. At Asda, the price fell from 116.9p to 113.9p.
INEOS, one of the world’s largest chemical companies, is aiming to produce commercial quantities of bioethanol fuel made from biodegradeable household waste by 2011 enabling cars to run on rubbish!
Cost-cutting car owners are regularly running out of fuel as they try to economise with fuel prices at record levels, according to a survey by breakdown company Britannia Rescue.
Crime rates - including vehicle-related crimes - could increase as the credit crunch threatens to bring to an end the longest recorded period of falling crime in living memory...
DVLA gives a unique serial number to all registration certificates issued. Due to a technical issue in the printing process, the following serial numbers have not, and will not be issued.
Businesses have called for the fuel duty escalator to be scrapped and not postponed, which was the move announced by Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling earlier this week.
Roads would be safer if money was spent improving accident black spots rather than more speed cameras, according to the latest survey of driver opinion from the UK’s biggest dedicated motoring panel.
Gordon Brown has defended a decision to postpone a 2p rise in fuel duty after David Cameron suggested it was timed to coincide with next week's by-election.
Further plans to allow drivers to use motorway hard shoulders and possible tolled lanes have been announced by the Government as part of a six-year, £6 billion jambuster package.
Formula One racing star David Coulthard is waving farewell to the fast lane this season but is encouraging young drivers to share their ideas on how Britain can produce better, safer drivers.
Car manufacturers are racing to be the first to introduce in-car internet technology that will allow passengers to surf the web and download their favourite videos and music while on the move.
Drivers who kill are to be given tougher sentences that could result in a maximum 14 years in prison, following the publication of new guidance to judges and magistrates by the Sentencing Guidelines C
Swindon Borough Council could become the first local authority in Britain to scrap speed cameras and spend its £400,000 road safety budget on other initiatives.
London is the most expensive place in the world to park a car, according to a global parking rate report compiled by Colliers International, a property consultancy.
Diesel car drivers are being unfairly penalised on the duty they pay on fuel. The UK Government receives 55.4p in duty for a litre of diesel, but in France it is 33.3p and Spain as low as 23.5p.
The Mini is going electric. Over the next few months, parent company BMW will be carrying out tests on hundreds of electrically powered Minis built at its Oxford plant and then modified in Munich.
BMW and Fiat have signed a memorandum of understanding to develop platforms and engines that could be used across their respective Mini and Alfa Romeo marques.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown has called on motorists to switch to electric or hybrid vehicles and learn eco-driving techniques to cut carbon dioxide emissions.
An estimated nine million motorists will have to pay more road tax under reforms aimed at punishing gas-guzzling vehicles, the government has admitted.
London Mayor Boris Johnson has scrapped proposals for an emission-based congestion charge that would have seen a £25 fee for high-emission vehicles and low-emission vehicles being exempt from charges.
The Government has applied the brake to the increased use of biofuels in the wake of new scientific evidence about their sustainability and impact on food prices.
