More data shows that Millennials don't like driving
Culprits Include Attitudes, Generation-Specific Conditions
Danny King
Can the flip-flopping data on millennials and their driving habits be chalked up to lies, damned lies or statistics? Too bad Mark Twain isn't around to figure that out, because analysts can't seem to get a decent handle on whether millennials are spending more or less time in their cars than their predecessors among Generation X and Baby Boomers. A most recent study from the University of North Carolina that was published in the Atlantic's Citylab [
http://www.citylab.com/commute/2015...-for-why-millennials-are-driving-less/398366/ ] suggests less.
The report takes a look at whether those driving habits are generation-specific and a result of a change in attitude (e.g., more concern for the environment, greater use of public transportation or bikes, etc.), or if they've been caused by different circumstances (e.g., many millennials hit driving age around the time of the most recent recession, which would naturally reduce the amount of driving they would be doing). The findings, of course, reflect that the decline was a combination of both factors. Either way, it may not only be a millennial thing, as driving levels started dropping off in the late 1990s with Generation X members.
Of course, this report contradicts many of the findings in an MTV study [
http://www.autoblog.com/2015/01/27/millennials-like-cars-after-all-mtv-study/ ] posted earlier this year. That report noted that millennials are driving more than Baby Boomers and Gen-X-ers. This wasn't merely an obligation thing either, as it found that younger drivers are more likely to take road trips during their free time than the older folks. In fact, millennials said they'd give up texting and social media (gasp!) before giving up their cars. O RLY?