Is it the end of the road for the automobile? 

The motorcar shaped so much of 20th-century social and cultural life, and came to symbolise Western prosperity and freedom. In the 21st century, however, the dream of the motorcar seems to be running out of gas.

For some campaigners and politicians today, the motorcar has come to symbolise selfish individualism, as well as social and environmental damage. In our towns and cities, restrictions such as Low-Traffic Neighbourhoods (LTNs), low-emission zones, 20mph speed limits and road charging are making driving increasingly impractical. Soaring fuel and running costs are pushing car ownership beyond the means of many ordinary people, particularly with proposed bans on petrol and diesel models on the horizon.

Yet the reality is that most people outside the south-east still drive to work. Life outside the biggest cities would be much harder – indeed, sometimes impossible – without access to a car. While many argue that electric cars are the future, the financial costs involved in transitioning to battery-powered vehicles are simply too much for most people to contemplate.

Have we really fallen out of love with the motorcar, or is it a vocal minority? Was mass personal transport a hubristic dream? Is it time to send the motorcar to the scrapyard, or is it possible still to make a positive case for car ownership for the future?

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