Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander has announced that the "car is king" across the UK, just as it had been in the 1980s, as Labour aims to help motorists.
Speaking at the National Railway Museum in York, Heidi Alexander reflected on her upbringing and how transport was central to her family's life.
The MP for Swindon South recounted how her father, Malcolm, purchased his first van, as well as her first bike, with the Transport Secretary even learning to drive on the infamous Magic Roundabout.
She added: "And the car factories that punctuate the town's history — Rover, Honda and now, BMW.
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Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander confirmed that Labour would be supporting drivers
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"It's fair to say that in 1980s Swindon, the car was king. It still is."
Alexander has been supportive of public transport options, mentioning Enrique Peñalosa, a former mayor of Bogotá, Colombia, who said an advanced city was one where the rich choose to use public transport.
But, she was keen to dispel any myths about removing cars from UK roads, adding that there is "no such thing as a war on motorists".
The former Deputy Mayor of London for Transport said: "I drive. I own a car and I love it - a racing green Mini Cooper convertible. I walk. I cycle. I take buses, trains, and taxis. And I’ll bet most of you do too.
"No serious person is proposing to ask people like my dad, a self-employed electrician, to swap their van for a bus, forcing them to lug all their kit around - I certainly am not."
Alongside planned reforms for the public ownership of the railways and greater protections for seafarers in law, Labour has unveiled several measures for motorists.
During her speech at the National Railway Museum, Alexander highlighted the £1.6billion in local highways, representing a boost of £500million compared to last year.
Data suggests that this could be enough to fill an extra seven million potholes, and follows on from Labour's pledge to fill an extra one million potholes a year.
During the lead-up to the General Election, Labour took aim at the Conservatives for allowing the problem to spiral out of control, with the UK having 100 times more potholes than there are craters on the moon.
Heidi Alexander also reiterated the call to support the installation of thousands of new electric vehicle chargers around the UK.
At present, there are almost 77,000 public chargers around the UK, with 1,165 installed last month. The Government aims to have 300,000 installed by the end of the decade.
It is also hoped that the growth in the number of EV chargers around the UK will incentivise drivers to invest in an electric car, with record-breaking sales seen this year.
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X/HEIDI_LABOURThe latest data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) shows that March was the best ever month for new EV registrations, with almost 70,000 sales.
This is a dramatic 43.2 per cent change year-on-year and is enough for electric vehicles to have a 19.4 per cent share of the overall market.
There are also now more than one million electric vehicles on the road, with promising progress in sales of battery electric vans and electric trucks.
