Transport Affordability Index
December Quarter 2023

Transport is a significant and unavoidable expense for households and is one of the key drivers of inflation.

In the December 2023 quarter, the typical Australian household’s transport costs rose by 0.7 per cent (0.6 per cent for the
typical capital city household and 0.8 per cent for the typical regional household).

This was roughly in line with the quarter’s Consumer Price Index increase of 0.6 per cent.

In the December 2022 quarter, the typical capital city household spent 15.6 per cent of its income on transport, but a year later this had risen to 17.0 per cent.

Over the same period, the typical regional benchmark centre household’s transport expenditure rose from 14.4 per cent of its income to 15.8 per cent.

In 2023, the CPI rose 4.1 per cent, but typical Australian household transport costs rose by 13 per cent (12.4 per cent for the typical capital city household and 13.7 per cent for the typical regional household).

This rise in transport costs was largely driven by increased up-front costs for purchasing new vehicles, higher interest rates on car loans, and increasing insurance premiums.