DREM releases transport statistics for the 1^st quarter of 2025, alongside the publication “Transport Statistics of the Autonomous Region of Madeira – 2024”

The Regional Directorate of Statistics of Madeira (DREM) is publishing today the data concerning the first three months of 2025 for the different modes of transport. When interpreting the data, it should be noted that certain results may have been slightly influenced by the calendar effect, given that Easter occurred in March 2024 but was celebrated in April 2025. The publication “Transport Statistics of the Autonomous Region of Madeira – 2024” is also made available.

Land transport – Increases in the acquisition of new and used vehicles and road traffic accidents

According to data compiled by DREM, bus passenger transport services recorded a total of 6.6 million passengers in the 1^st quarter of 2025. Urban lines accounted for 4.1 million passengers, while interurban lines carried 2.4 million. Year-on-year changes are not presented for these indicators due to the implementation of a new ticketing system, resulting in a break in the time series.

Between January and March 2025, over 316 800 cable car tickets were sold in the Region (+3.6% compared to the same period in 2024), of which 94.1% were for adults, 4.1% for children, and the remaining 1.8% for other users (e.g. farmers, residents, students, etc.). In the same period, total revenue amounted to approximately 4.2 million euros, representing an increase of 8.0% compared to the previous year.

In turn, the Registers of the Region recorded the transfer of ownership for 4 036 used motor vehicles in the 1^st quarter of 2025, 87.5% of which were passenger cars and 11.2% light commercial vehicles. Additionally, 55 cargo vehicles were registered, corresponding to around 1.4% of the total. Compared to the 1^st quarter of 2024, the number of registrations increased by 279, reflecting a year-on-year growth of 7.4%.

According to information collected by ACAP – Associação Automóvel de Portugal – from the Institute for Records and Notary, a total of 1 359 new vehicles were acquired by residents of the Autonomous Region of Madeira (ARM) in the 1^st quarter of 2025, representing a 1.3% increase compared to the same period in 2024. It is important to note that this variable refers to acquisitions by resident entities, including those made by rent-a-car companies, and does not reflect the sales reported by car dealerships operating in the Region.

Provisional data provided by the Madeira Regional Command of the Public Security Police (PSP) indicate that 922 road accidents involving police intervention were recorded in the 1^st quarter of 2025, marking an increase of 9.8% compared to the same quarter of the previous year. The total number of victims amounted to 294 (46 more than in 2024), including 274 minor injuries, 17 serious injuries and 3 fatalities.

Acquisition of electric vehicles in the Autonomous Region of Madeira increased by 14.0% in 2024

According to data collected by DREM from ACAP, a total of 780 fully electric cars were acquired by Autonomous Region of Madeira (ARM) residents in 2024, representing a 3.2% decrease compared to the previous year. Additionally, 1,518 plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (petrol or diesel) were acquired, corresponding to a 25.6% increase compared to 2023. In total, 2,298 electric vehicles were acquired in the Region, reflecting a 14.0% year-on-year increase.

Air transport – Passenger movement at the Autonomous Region of Madeira airports again exceeded 1 million

The ARM airports recorded a total of approximately 1 142,100 passengers in the 1^st quarter of 2025, corresponding to a year-on-year increase of 6.7%. The Madeira Airport contributed to this growth with an increase of 7.1% compared to the same period in the previous year, while Porto Santo Airport recorded a decline of 6.7%.

In the reference quarter, the occupancy of aircraft handled at the ARM airports stood at 82.3%, with Madeira Airport registering 82.7% and Porto Santo Airport 72.7%. In the same period of 2024, the overall occupancy was higher: 84.5%, 85.0%, and 73.1%, respectively.

With regard to air cargo, the airports in the Region experienced an overall decline of 8.9% in the 1^st quarter of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024. Analysing by type of operation, unloaded goods increased by 10.3% year-on-year, while loaded goods decreased by 45.2%.

Maritime transport – Increase in goods movement at ports

In the area of maritime transport, 105 cruise ships entered the ARM ports during the 1^st quarter of 2025, 28 more than in the same period of the previous year. The number of cruise passengers in transit (258 880) also rose year-on-year (+16.5%).

During this quarter, the Port of Funchal received 258 880 cruise passengers in transit, the vast majority of whom (96.0%) were European nationals. The leading nationalities were German (47.5% of the total; +16.9% year-on-year), British (34.9%; -3.4%), Spanish (2.1%; +406.7%), Italian (1.8%; +164.5%), Austrian (1.4%; +43.5%), Irish (1.2%; +93.5%), and Dutch (1.1%; +26.9%). It is also worth noting that passengers from the American continent represented 3.3% of the total, increasing by 45.3% compared to the 1^st quarter of 2024. The most significant contributions came from the United States (2.3% of the total; +34.0%) and Canada (0.7%; +101.7%).

On the Madeira–Porto Santo line, the number of passengers stood at approximately 27 700, representing a decrease of 27.9% compared to the same quarter of 2024.

The movement of goods traffic at the ARM ports recorded an overall increase of 2.3% compared to the same period of the previous year. This result was mainly due to a year-on-year rise in unloaded goods (+3.6%), as the volume of loaded goods declined by 7.1%.

Between January and March 2025, a total of 251 recreational vessels entered the Region’s marinas, representing a year-on-year increase of 2.9%. These vessels carried 611 crew members and passengers, a decrease of 7.6% compared to the same period of the previous year.

For more information, please consult:

• In Focus (Portuguese only)
• Publications (Portuguese only)
• Tables (Air Transport)
• Tables (Maritime Transport)
• Tables (Road Transport)

Back

• Prev
• Next