The Goan Network
PANAJI
There is no surprise that traffic jams have become more of a norm than an exception as Economic Survey revealed that over 80,000 vehicles, on an average, are getting registered every year in Goa.
Interestingly, the cumulative number of motor vehicles registered with the Transport Department stood at 13.82 lakhs as on December 31, 2018. If 80,000 vehicles get added to a base of 13.82 lakhs, it means that it will take only about 17 years to double the vehicle population in the state, which is a very scary proposition indeed.
The Economic Survey revealed that the number of vehicles registered stood at 86,119 in 2017-18, at 80,403 in 2016-17 and 74,563 in 2015-16. Between the nine months of April to December 2018, 57,393 vehicles got registered in the State.
Of total 13.82 lakhs motor vehicles in the State as on December 2018, 9.52 lakhs were motorcycles and scooters. This shows that approximately 69% of vehicles in Goa are motor-cycles and scooters. This is perhaps because bikes and scooters are the most affordable medium to commute.
Goans are known to love their cars and this fact is clearly evident in the Economic Survey because the number of private cars and jeeps stood at 2.86 lakhs at December 2018 end. This means that roughly 21% of all motor vehicles sold in Goa are private cars and jeeps.
Interestingly, the number of private cars and jeeps getting registered every year is increasing at a rapid rate.
In 2015-16, 16,353 private cars and jeeps were registered in Goa, which increased to 18,267 in 2016-17, and to 20,990 in 2017-18.
Goa is a major tourism destination, which results in huge demand for taxis and bikes on hire. The Economic Survey showed that 22,815 taxis are registered with the State. Apart from this, there are 30,199 motorcycles for hire as well.
