We spend too much time driving cars

Even the keenest of drivers feels tired after putting a few hundred miles under the wheels, but research has now uncovered the staggering distance UK motorists drive.

According to an Admiral car insurance study of two million policyholders, each spends an average of 7,755 miles behind the wheel in a year.

Those motorists alone cover a total of more than 15 billion miles, but with 34.5 million licence holders in the UK, the insurer estimates that all UK drivers put together cover a total annual distance of 267 billion miles.

The amazing figure means that, laid end to end, car journeys by UK drivers alone would take them to the moon and back over half a million times.

And with the sun 'only' 93 million miles away, UK motorists drive the equivalent of more than 1,400 round trips each year.

And despite the rising costs of car ownership, the average UK motorist's annual mileage has increased by 4.5% since 2000, the insurer says.

"Most motorists don't realise just how far they drive each year," said Admiral managing director Sue Longthorn.

"It's staggering, especially when you consider there are only around 246,000 miles of road in the country," she added.

"It's no wonder our roads seem so congested."