Digital Radio Installations Top 80% in U.K.

More than 84% of the nearly 2.7 million passenger vehicles registered in the U.K. last year were fitted with digital radios, according to the country’s Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

This compares to an installation rate of about 70% last year and less than 30% in 2012.

The share of all radio listening on digital audio broadcasting (DAB) platforms in the U.K. reached 46% in the third quarter last year. The government has indicated it will begin to phase out analog broadcasts once DAB coverage tops 50%.

Motorists with a DAB system can access more than 400 radio stations. DAB stations also enable improved quality. The technology was launched in Europe in the mid-1990s.