Air travel accounted for 25.3% of total passenger-kilometres in Cyprus in 2024, the third-highest share among EU member states, according to data published on Friday by Eurostat. A higher share was recorded only in Croatia, where air travel accounted for 45.6% of total passenger-kilometres, and in Bulgaria, with 30.3%.
Across the EU as a whole, the car remained the main mode of transport in 2024, accounting for 69.2% of total passenger-kilometres, estimated at 6,130 billion. The share of car travel fell by 1 percentage point compared with 2023, according to Eurostat.
Air travel accounted for 15.8% of the EU total, up 1 percentage point year on year. It was followed by rail travel at 7.5%, up 0.3 percentage points, and travel by bus, coach and trolleybus at 7.3%, down 0.2 percentage points. Sea travel remained at 0.4%.
Eurostat noted that rail's share has been gradually increasing in recent years, and in 2024 it overtook the equivalent share for bus, coach and trolleybus travel for the first time since 2014.
Compared with 2014, the share of car travel in the EU fell by 2.9 percentage points, and that of bus, coach and trolleybus travel by 1.3 percentage points. By contrast, rail's share rose by 0.9 percentage points and air travel's by 3.6 percentage points.
Lithuania tops car use at 83.7%
Among member states, the highest share of travel by passenger car was recorded in Lithuania, at 83.7% of total passenger-kilometres. It was followed by the Netherlands at 77.0% and Finland at 75.4%.
For bus, coach and trolleybus travel, the highest share was recorded in Malta at 17.0%, followed by Ireland at 16.6% and Hungary at 15.3%.
Rail had its highest share in Hungary, at 11.3%, followed by Austria at 10.4% and the Netherlands at 9.8%.
For sea travel, the largest share was recorded in Estonia, at 2.7%, followed by Malta at 2.4% and Croatia at 2.3%.
Source: Cyprus News Agency (CNA)
