Transport statistics for metropolitan areas: 2000 edition

This bulletin is a companion volume to the annual Transport Statistics for London, including similar topics where data are available. The coverage is mainly the areas of the six former metropolitan counties - West Midlands, Greater Manchester, Merseyside, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire and Tyne & Wear. Although the Metropolitan County Councils were abolished in 1986, these remain convenient areas for the consideration of transport issues in the main centres of population outside London. This is the fourth such bulletin, the previous three having appeared in1995, 1998 and 1999.

For comparison purposes, inner London and Greater London have also been included in many tables. However Transport Statistics for London should be consulted for more detail.

Metropolitan Areas: Most consist of a major conurbation, with some outlying large cities and towns:

• in the West Midlands, Coventry is completely separate from the main built-up area around Birmingham;
• in Greater Manchester, Wigan, Bolton, Bury and Rochdale are separate from the main built-up area around Manchester;
• on Merseyside, the river Mersey separates the Wirral from the rest of the area;
• South Yorkshire includes the separate conurbations of Sheffield, Rotherham, Barnsley and Doncaster.
• West Yorkshire includes the separate conurbations of Leeds, Bradford, Huddersfield, Wakefield, and Halifax;
• in Tyne & Wear, the river Tyne divides Newcastle and North Tyneside from Gateshead and South Tyneside, while Sunderland lies further south on the river Wear.

Summary: by area

• West Midlands: has the highest population (just over 2.6 million), the highest population density (29 people per hectare) and the highest average earnings and GDP per head. It has the highest daily traffic flows on its major roads (28 thousand vehicles in 1998), and the highest number of cars registered per thousand population. It also has the highest annual number of bus journeys.
• Greater Manchester: the population is just under 2.6 million, very close to that of West Midlands. It has the largest number of households, approaching 1.1 million. It also has the highest proportion of its workforce travelling to work by car (75 per cent) and has the largest increase over the last ten years in cars registered per head of population.
• Merseyside: has experienced the greatest population decline between 1981 and 1996of nearly 7 per cent. It has suffered the largest decrease in employment, down 10 per cent since 1987, and has the lowest GDP per head of population. Its major roads have the lowest average daily traffic flow (20 thousand vehicles in 1996).
• South Yorkshire: had the lowest population density in 1996, at 8 people per hectare. Over the last ten years it has experienced the greatest increase in traffic flows on its major roads, but it has one of the lowest rates of total road casualties per thousand population.
• West Yorkshire: experienced a 2 per cent population increase between 1981 and1996, while population fell in all the other former metropolitan counties. It has the largest land area, and a low population density (10 per hectare). It has seen the highest increase in employment, up 4 per cent since 1987.
• Tyne & Wear: has the smallest population (1.1 million in 1996) and the smallest area. It also has the lowest average household size at 2.33 persons per household. It has the highest proportion of its workforce travelling to work by public transport - 18 per cent by bus and coach and 3 per cent by rail, according to the 1997 Labour Force Survey. It has the lowest number of cars registered per thousand population (272).

Publication details

Published by DETR Directorate of Communications, in July 2000

Available by telephone order on +44 (0)20 7944 3098

E-mail publicationgeneral.enq@dft.gov.ukfor queries concerning Transport Statistics for Metropolitan Areas.