Analysis of address data from Inverness, Newport, and Exeter indicates that the number 3 is not the most frequently occurring digit in UK street addresses. A total of 218,126 digits from these locations showed that the number 1 was the most common, appearing 22% of the time.
The number 3 was found in 12% of the digits, while 2 appeared 15% of the time. Other digits ranged from 0 (6%) to 9 (6%). This data suggests that if these locations are representative, the number 3 is not the most common.
The question arose from a reader's difficulty in finding the number 3 for a wheelie bin at two stores. One reader suggested that the prevalence of short roads in most of the UK might mean numbers 1 and 2 feature more highly, as many roads have fewer than 30 houses.