Is the car culture dying? (Washington Post)

[inanna]

By Robert J. Samuelson July 10 at 7:16 PM

Few technological breakthroughs have had the social and economic impact of the automobile. It changed America’s geography, spawning suburbs, shopping malls and sprawl as far as the eye could see. It redefined how we work and play, from the daily commute to the weekend trek to the beach. It expanded the heavy industry — steel-making, car production — that made the Midwest the economy’s epicenter for decades. And, finally but not least, the car became the quintessential symbol of American mobility, status and independence.

Now there are signs that the car and its many offshoots (SUVs, pickup trucks) are losing their grip on the American psyche and pocketbook. The car culture may be dying or, at any rate, slumping into a prolonged era of eclipse. The only question is whether the signs of change can be believed. It’s not clear.

Young Americans, particularly millennials (ages 18 to 35), have lost their zest for buying and driving cars, it’s said. Once upon a time, getting your driver’s license — typically at 16 or 17 — was a rite of passage. You were liberated from dependence on the parental chauffeur. It was a big step toward adulthood. But this landmark no longer seems to matter so much.

Just recently, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) published figures — first reported on the Atlantic magazine’s CityLab website — indicating that the number of licensed drivers 16 or younger in 2014 had dropped 37 percent since 2009 and, at 1.08 million, was “the lowest number since the 1960s.”

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Link: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/is-the-car-culture-dying/2016/07/10/52a20a56-451e-11e6-88d0-6adee48be8bc_story.html

[Warpy]

1. Cars are expensive

and when the average Millennial looks at the monthly cost of a car added to his/her student loan payments and living expenses, it just doesn't seem reasonable to own one. Many are opting for bicycles, others are moving to cities and taking mass transit. While a car once represented freedom, it's become a huge burden for a lot of people and if they've got a license, they'll use it to rent a car once or twice a year when they have to haul something home or want to go on vacation.

More and more, their social life revolves around the web, so why bother with a car?

[Kelvin Mace]

4. Excellent point!

More and more, their social life revolves around the web, so why bother with a car?

You can hang with your friends and game, and stay in touch via text, chat, Skype, etc.

Hell, I wish I had all of these option when I was dating my wife and we lived 3 hours away. $200 phone bills were murder back in the 80s.

[Todays_Illusion]

11. The U.S. working class used to be a home buying class and now the lowest earning 40% can't afford

a new car.

to buy a new car or maintain the insurance and maintenance cost of one already owned.

And yet there is still not much push for increasing worker and middle class pay. Our corporations are more profitable than ever in history and our wealthiest are the wealthiest they have ever been.

They want you to have less, we already have less than our own parents, lower pay, longer hours, higher costs for education, because if you have children in public schools you are shelling out cash all y ear long for this fee and that fee and fund raising as well. This used to be not only unheard of, not allowed in some states.

How much more are we going to give up?

The rich consider Social Security a welfare program because the employer pays an amount equal to the employee.
They want this not just cut, but ended.


When we settle for a health care program that still cost too much money, the money need for profit for insurance companies, profits for hospitals, profits for drug companies, profit first not health care first.

Income chart: http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/02/16/the-shocking-decline-of-americas-real-minimum-wage.aspx
And this is on the eliminate list.

[Warpy]

12. Yeah, and the goddamned fools at the top of both parties can't understand why

both Trump and Sanders got so much traction this year.

They managed to stop Sanders. I guess they think Trump will take orders, or at least look out for his own fortune and by extension, theirs.

I fear we are getting very close to revolution in this country. The next few years will be our last chance for a peaceful one.

[Kelvin Mace]

2. If you live some place with mass transit

or in a small town where things are within walking distance, then you can get along without a car. Car ownership is expensive. Ball park, $5000+ per year, per car. (figuring a $2400 car payment, $2400 insurance, $500 gasoline, plus maintenance and repairs. That is in my neck of the woods, and my age. For younger people in other states it could easily be half again that much, or more.

If I had a safe road to bike on, I would bike to work.

[Lochloosa]

3. The car culture died when they stopped calling them Chargers....

And started calling them Probes.

[FuzzyRabbit]

5. When I was young

a car was not only transportation, it was also a hobby for most young men. We would spend evenings or weekends working on it ourselves: doing tune-ups, oil changes, repairs, souping it up, customizing it. Cars were mechanical and required only basic mechanical skills.

Now to do routine maintenance on your car you almost need a degree in electronics, and the cost of parts is astronomical compared with the old days. An inexpensive repair costs hundreds of dollars. No wonder we have lost interest in our cars.

[BeyondGeography]

6. My daughter (20) doesn't see the point

She just got her license, for ID purposes as much as for driving. She lives in a city and mostly bikes, uses mass transit or hitches a ride. It is damned expensive and kids her age are seeing the math problem of car ownership. The only kids with cars most often have them paid for by their parents. It's a Zip Car world going forward, IMO.

[SheilaT]

7. It really does depend on the availability of good public transport.

I occasionally take the bus here in Santa Fe, but this city, nice as it is, is a bit too small for really good public transport.

If I ever relocate, good public transportation is likely to be my number one thing to consider.

[quickesst]

8. A part of the article states....

.."You were liberated from dependence on the parental chauffeur." Seems that trend is reversing itself. Along with all of the legitimate reasons cited in this thread, I believe this one is also legitimate, along with parental concerns with safety . Plus, more time for the iPhone.

http://www.seattletimes.com/life/lifestyle/more-teens-stay-in-the-passengers-seat/

Experts cite a number of reasons: the cost of an additional car — plus insurance and gas — in a shaky economy, for one. And new license restrictions for those under 18 have taken some of the fun out of driving.

“I think a large part of it is safety,” said Michael Botwin, chairman of the psychology department at California State University, Fresno. And “I think parents are simply far more doting on this generation” of teens.

Botwin cited the example of his own 18-year-old son: “My wife looked at me recently and said, ‘Are you going to drive him around until he’s 25?”‘

Botwin’s son finally got his license three weeks ago and is now looking for his first job, he said. But when parents don’t push teens to drive, get jobs and do for themselves, adolescence is prolonged, he said.

[LongtimeAZDem]

9. My daughter gets her permit this month

I've made it clear, as soon as she's capable of running errands, she'll be doing so.

[murielm99]

10. I envy people who can live and work without a car.

I would do that if I could.

[inanna]

16. I get by okay....

I'm one who does enjoy the occasional pleasure tour, I'll admit. Drives to nowhere in particular, with a cup of coffee and the radio blaring.

But I live in a mid sized city, where nearly everything is within walking distance, or accessible by transit.

I cannot afford a car in these times, and walking does help to keep me in reasonably good shape.

It can be a royal pain in the ass when it comes to some things though, like large orders of groceries, or icy sidewalks in winter.

[Judi Lynn]

13. Very interesting news. We can do with less pollution, as well. n/t

[bemildred]

14. I hope so. Cars are big expensive pains in the ass. nt

[rafeh1]

15. Ebikes are king

Once you have tried good ebike no going back.
Its free transit.
1. No registration
2. No tax
3. No licence
4. No insurance
5. No payments
6. No gas
7. No oil

Google 40c3 to see my daily driver ebike

[inanna]

17. True for now....

although unfortunately the first four points you made could change at any time....

[geek tragedy]

18. cars don't make economic sense if you live in an urban area

with solid public transportation.