Ibiza is recording several changes in its mobility patterns in 2026, with public transport use rising sharply while vehicle movements through the island's port and new passenger-car registrations have declined.

The figures coincide with the start of European Mobility Week and provide some of the first signs of a possible shift towards greater use of public transport.

However, the available data covers different periods and does not yet establish that Ibiza has undergone a structural change in the way people move around the island.

Bus Use Reaches Record Levels

The clearest change is in public bus use.

Between April and August, Ibiza's new bus network recorded 4,958,831 journeys, 26.4% more than during the same period in 2025.

August was particularly strong, with 1,251,534 passengers recorded during the month. That was 40.2% higher than August 2025 and represented the highest monthly figure recorded on the island so far.

The increase coincides with the introduction of Ibiza's new public transport network in April, which brought changes to routes, frequencies and operating hours. The Consell has attributed the growth in part to the expanded service.

A Longer-Term Increase in Public Transport

The increase in bus use did not begin entirely in 2026.

Ibiza recorded 7.42 million public transport journeys during 2025, the highest figure in the historical series, compared with 7.32 million in 2024.

At the same time, average daily traffic intensity fell by 4.2% in 2025 to 11,015 vehicles.

Vehicle-kilometres also declined slightly, from 783.7 million to 781.1 million.

The combination of increased public transport use and reduced traffic in 2025 provides additional context for the figures now emerging in 2026.

Fewer Vehicle Movements Through Ibiza Port

Another indicator comes from the number of vehicles moving through the Port of Ibiza.

Between May and July 2026, there were 129,434 vehicle movements recorded through the port.

That was 4.8% fewer than during the same period in 2025 and 13.7% below the figure recorded in 2024.

Compared with two years earlier, the difference amounts to 20,532 fewer vehicle movements.

The Consell has cautioned, however, that the July figures were still provisional.

New Car Registrations Are Also Falling

Vehicle registration data provides another indication, although it needs to be interpreted carefully.

Between January and July, Ibiza recorded 3,261 new vehicle registrations, an overall increase of 6.6% compared with the previous year.

The increase was driven by motorcycles and mopeds rather than passenger cars.

Passenger-car registrations fell from 1,628 to 1,565, a decline of 3.9%.

At the same time, motorcycle and moped registrations increased from 936 to 1,203, representing a 28.5% rise.

This means the island is not simply seeing fewer newly registered vehicles overall.

The Motorcycle Factor Matters

The increase in motorcycles and mopeds makes the wider mobility picture more complicated.

Ibiza & Formentera Preservation has cautioned that motorcycles may occupy less road space than cars, but they remain privately operated motorised vehicles and should not automatically be classified as sustainable mobility.

Consequently, the fall in passenger-car registrations cannot by itself be interpreted as evidence that residents are moving away from private motorised transport.

The complete vehicle-registration picture shows that total registrations are still increasing.

2025 Also Recorded a Drop in Traffic

The latest figures follow an important development recorded last year.

In 2025, Ibiza experienced its first annual reduction in traffic intensity in seven years.

Average daily traffic intensity fell by 4.2%, while the number of vehicle-kilometres also declined slightly.

The change was recorded alongside the continued growth of public transport, although the two trends measure different aspects of mobility and cannot automatically be assumed to have a direct causal relationship.

Formentera Shows a Different Pattern

The mobility picture in Formentera is different.

Between January and July 2026, the island's buses carried 167,714 passengers, compared with 194,850 during the same period in 2025.

That represents a decline of around 14%.

Bus supply, however, increased. During the same period, buses travelled 237,902 useful kilometres, compared with 221,363 a year earlier, an increase of around 7.5%.

The figures therefore show that increased public transport provision has not yet translated into higher passenger numbers on Formentera.

Formentera.eco Continues to Limit Vehicles

Formentera is also continuing to regulate the number of vehicles allowed on the island through Formentera.eco.

As of September 15, the system had received 46,669 applications for vehicle authorisations.

Of these, 39,880 had been accepted, 5,202 rejected and 1,587 were pending or had not been completed.

The system maintains a total ceiling of 10,287 vehicles during the June-to-September regulatory period.

The island's authorities are also preparing a survey to assess residents' perceptions of vehicle pressure and the operation of Formentera.eco.

Ibiza's Mobility Picture Is Changing, But It Is Too Early to Call It Structural

The combination of rising bus use, fewer vehicle movements through Ibiza's port and fewer new passenger-car registrations provides several indicators pointing in the same direction.

But these figures do not prove that Ibiza has already moved to a less car-dependent mobility model.

The periods covered by the different datasets are not identical, while the rise in motorcycle registrations shows that private motorised transport remains significant.

Ibiza & Formentera Preservation has described the latest figures as early indications of a possible rebalancing of mobility, while stressing that the complete 2026 data will be needed to determine whether the trend becomes structural.

What Will Show Whether the Trend Continues?

The full-year figures will provide a clearer picture of how mobility is changing across Ibiza.

Among the key indicators will be average daily traffic intensity, vehicle-kilometres, public transport use and, particularly, the distribution between different modes of transport.

The current figures provide evidence of strong growth in bus use and some reductions in car-related indicators, but the longer-term direction will only become clearer once a complete set of 2026 data is available.

For now, Ibiza appears to be showing early signs of a possible mobility shift rather than a confirmed transformation.