The number of licensed motor vehicles between July and September increased by 2,851 - an average of 31 per day - when compared to the previous three months, according to the National Statistics Office. 

The NSO said in a statement that, at the end of September, the stock of licensed motor vehicles stood at 411,056.

Out of this total, 76% were passenger cars, 13.8%  were commercial motor vehicles and 9.1% were motorcycles/quadricycles/E-Kick Scooters and All-Terrain Vehicles (ATVs). Buses and minibuses amounted to less than 1%. 

Newly licensed motor vehicles

A total of 5,235 newly licensed motor vehicles were put on the road during this period, while 7,130 motor vehicles were taken off the road due to a restriction. 

A further 4,850 motor vehicles had their restriction ending during the quarter, meaning they could return to local roads. 

Of the newly licenced vehicles, the majority - 3,235 (61.8%) - were passenger cars, followed by motorcycle/E- bicycle/PA-Bicycle with 1,237 or 23.6%.

Newly licensed ‘new’ motor vehicles amounted to 2,859 or 54.6%, whereas newly licensed ‘used’ motor vehicles totalled 2,376 or 45.4%.

An average of 57 motor vehicles per day were newly licensed.

Motor vehicles under restriction

Of the 7,130 vehicles taken off the road, 38.8% were scrapped, 30.5% were put up for resale, while 28.8% were garaged.

Of the 4,850 vehicles that saw restrictions end that quarter, the majority were garaged (51.8%) or resold (47.7%).

Motor engine type

As of the end of September 2021, 243,383 motor vehicles or 59.2% had petrol-powered engines. Diesel-powered motor vehicles reached 156,350 (38%). 

Electric and plug-in hybrid motor vehicles accounted for 1.4% of the entire stock, with a total of 5,790 motor vehicles.

When compared to the previous quarter, increases of 50%, 22.5% and 18.3% were registered in the plug-in hybrid (diesel-electric), mild hybrid (diesel-electric) and plug-in hybrid (petrol-electric) motor vehicles respectively.