Speaking of Sightline (in the post below), researcher Clark Williams-Derry adds his own take with another post in the series, “Dude, Where are my cars?”
Sheesh, kids these days. In a brand new report, the Frontier Group documents the sharp decline in driving among the under-30 set—and argues that those trends won’t reverse themselves any time soon.
I don’t think anybody really knows what the future holds for youth driving. But the Frontier Group has the recent trends nailed down pretty tight.
Today’s young folks are less likely to own cars than their older siblings did. Many don’t even bother to get a driver’s license. Those who do drive are logging fewer miles on their cars. Economic shifts make it harder for young folks to afford to drive. Meanwhile, new mobile internet technologies and changing attitudes have reduced the car’s appeal, while boosting transit, biking, and walking. For anyone who wants to understand the changing face of car travel, the report’s definitely worth a read.
Yet there’s a monumental demographic shift underway among the older set: more and more baby boomers are entering the stage of life when driving ebbs.
What I draw from all this is that driving trends are being pinched from all sides.
Excellent point about fewer baby boomers needing to run errands and ferrying families around town.