After a passionate affair lasting the length of the 20th century, the signs are that in the 21st the British are falling out of love with the motor car. While levels of private car ownership have not fallen yet, the number of miles driven in each car has been in decline for years. Once a symbol of freedom, the appeal of your own set of wheels has been seriously reduced by congestion.

A persuasive new study by the Independent Transport Commission (ITC) suggests decreased usage will soon become decreased ownership. What planners call “peak car” –— the point at which a road network becomes effectively full up and the disincentives to owning a car outweigh the convenience — may well be about to arrive.

For many people, notably those living in big cities, a number set to increase, peak car has already arrived. Urban driving long ago became the opposite of taking to the open road. Policies to lower car usage in cities, pedestrianisation, traffic-calming, investment in public transport, bus lanes, bicycle lanes, have found favour with urbanites. Short-term car hire is a growth industry. Cycling is enjoying an extraordinary and welcome revival. New technology in the form of GPS and phone apps has made travelling by bus or taxi efficient and predictable. Teleworking has reduced the number of commuters.

As the ITC says, these trends will surely continue. Among the young, passing your test and owning your first car are no longer the rites of passage they once were for previous generations.

In 1996, 80 per cent of men aged 21-29 held a driving licence. By 2009, that figure had dropped to 67 per cent. Yet current government transport planning remains stubbornly based on a forecast of a 41 per cent increase in car traffic over the next 25 years. If ever a prediction needed a rethink, this one is surely it.