Post by rmarks1 on Aug 18, 2013 12:17:09 GMT -5
Okay, NOT obsolete. But it does seem to be on the decline.
Bob
...studies suggest the challenges automakers face go well beyond the residual effects of the Great Recession.
It's not just that cars have become less affordable for cash-strapped young adults, it's also that, well, driving simply doesn't seem as cool as it once was.
More than a third of young adults who don't drive say they are too busy to get a driver's license, and more than a fifth don't plan to ever learn to drive, according to a new study released Wednesday by the University of Michigan.
In a survey of 618 adults under 40 years old who don't have a driver's license, the university's Transportation Research Institute reaffirmed a 2010 study and found that the allure of driving has continued to fade. Of those surveyed, 37% say they are too busy or do not have enough time to get a driver's license; 32% say that owning and maintaining a vehicle is too expensive and 31% are able to catch a ride with others.
A few other factors explain the trend: There's the growth of bike share programs in some major cities; many young adults have ditched the suburbs for urban areas with public transportation, according to the survey.
What's perhaps most striking, however, is that the Internet may have also made driving more of a hassle than a convenience. Why drive to work when you can work remotely from home; why drive to shopping centers when you can order virtually anything online?
"There's been a cultural shift," says Brandon Schoettle, one of three authors of the University of Michigan study.
finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/08/16/car-sales-young-adults/?iid=SF_F_River
It's not just that cars have become less affordable for cash-strapped young adults, it's also that, well, driving simply doesn't seem as cool as it once was.
More than a third of young adults who don't drive say they are too busy to get a driver's license, and more than a fifth don't plan to ever learn to drive, according to a new study released Wednesday by the University of Michigan.
In a survey of 618 adults under 40 years old who don't have a driver's license, the university's Transportation Research Institute reaffirmed a 2010 study and found that the allure of driving has continued to fade. Of those surveyed, 37% say they are too busy or do not have enough time to get a driver's license; 32% say that owning and maintaining a vehicle is too expensive and 31% are able to catch a ride with others.
A few other factors explain the trend: There's the growth of bike share programs in some major cities; many young adults have ditched the suburbs for urban areas with public transportation, according to the survey.
What's perhaps most striking, however, is that the Internet may have also made driving more of a hassle than a convenience. Why drive to work when you can work remotely from home; why drive to shopping centers when you can order virtually anything online?
"There's been a cultural shift," says Brandon Schoettle, one of three authors of the University of Michigan study.
finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/08/16/car-sales-young-adults/?iid=SF_F_River
Bob
