The Great Debate: Do Millenials Want Cars, Or Not?

I think perspective here is skewed since most here are from Houston where you can't survives without a car. My niece is 28 and works as an engineer in Boston. She has no intention of buying a car while she lives there. One of her roommates own a car that they share to buy groceries.

 

And the fact that we already have one of the best and most comprehensive continental highway systems in the world, upon which expansion would be completely compatible, fully negates your perceived need for comprehensive mass transit.

 

Cars are a necessity if you live in Houston.

 

You don't need a car if you don't have a life.

 

Cars are lame. Buses are in right now.

Except you can't sing on top of your lungs when you're in a bus.

 

Since I've lived in Chicago, I've rarely used a car (if I have, it's been Zip Car) because I just find public transport to be so much easier and more convenient. I choose not to have a car, it doesn't make sense economically for me (parking, gas, limited use). The only time I find myself ever using a car is if I need to bring a lot of groceries from the supermarket.

Commuter rail is something I wish Houston had, I'd love to go to a Rockets game from the suburbs if there was public transport.

 

Kind of surprised about the Driver's License stats. But yeah, I think a lot of it is young people are increasingly wanting to live in cities, where owning a car is basically just an expensive pain in the ass and rarely used.

My wife works in the city and takes public transportation to work. Finally after about 5 years of keeping two cars we got rid of one of them. It's pretty liberating. Plus saved about $3k a year in insurance, parking, and maintenance.

 

I have a patch on my jacket that says, "If I have to explain it to you, you'll never understand it" in reference to riding a bike.

Sure feels like I can use it here.

Can you imagine a society NOT knowing how beautiful it's backyard is?

 

Its partly not being able to afford it. Its coddled youngsters who DON'T want to REALLY feel the "grown people pressure" of life. And want everything in arms reach.

Plus they're all drinking the progressive Kool-Aid after getting pounded time and time again about how society is "supposed" to work.

Gen X was/is plenty bad about that too. But Gen X still had to value real life social skills instead of trying to have so many alternatives and replacements of the real thing. Like how millennials prefer to socialize online - obviously its online WHERE they're getting exposed and battered with the messages. And the irony of being so connected technologically while being posers of living "off the grid".

That said, myself being Gen X, I've always thought cars were overrated as status symbol and am a "point a to point b" type. And right now I don't own a car.

(Though I STILL say public transportation is very overrated as a SOLE means to get around. When its time to find jobs you're screwed and have to move and relocate when you coulda just commuted by car. Still cheaper than owning a car, but I'd prefer the TIME savings in LIFE instead of minutes wasted in travel.)

I tried to lend support the causes. Now this is just being annoying. Stand strong though, oppressed millies

 

If there's no room then that means that the highway system is comprehensive enough to fill transport needs. It also means there's no point in adding mass transit. I don't really buy your claim about funding for highway expansion or repair: which is likely false, especially if the public were made aware of any real deficiencies or impairments. But even if it were true, how would funding for mass transit suddenly pop up? This thesis of yours that "some people" consider not driving anywhere "freedom" really doesn't explain why taxing and inconveniencing the overwhelming majority of this population that has driven and continues to drive for the last 60 years wouldn't be exploitative or inefficient.

 

I'm wondering if it depends where and how you were raised. Some of us are from small or spread-out towns, our parents always loved their cars, and road trips have been a big part of our lives. Vacations, regular shorter trips to see family, or driving around because you're bored and want something to do, or are just curious to see what something looks like. Many of us rarely or never took city buses - or airplanes - anywhere as kids.

Nothing against mass transit; it's definitely more environmentally efficient in a lot of cases. I personally wouldn't be happy living in a city with a high population density, but looks like my choice isn't the popular one. A lot of this country, geographically, is spread out farms, ranches, etc., and the smaller cities that serve those rural populations. For those of us out there, pretty much anyone will want a car sooner or later unless it's medically not possible to drive.

When in Austin, I tried to make myself take buses when possible because it was environmentally better and more efficient than parking at UT. It was more time-consuming, though - a bit of a pain to make sure you left wherever you were in time to make the bus, etc. Not to mention some odd characters riding those things.

 

There comes a point where the city's infrastructure cannot handle EVERYONE owning a car. Congested and crammed cities like New York. Houston is a different animal, and you would have to hold me at gunpoint to force me to ride the public transportation system here.

 

And federal, state and local governments contribute significantly more to highway expansion and repairs as well; they would do so more generously if need be, because highways and interstates provide more value and utility. You still haven't documented your claim that there's no money for road expansion or repairs, or the implied counterpoint that the public wants or is willing to spend more on mass transit.

We also have one of the most elaborate highway systems in the country, because our original geography and current population necessitate it. And just because the rest of the population doesn't and hasn't wanted something you do for the last sixty years, doesn't mean they have a bad "attitude."

 

The fact that we are constantly building, expanding, restructuring our highways says a lot about our traffic dilemma and mass transit.

 

I currently live in Washington, DC, where buying a car is a waste of money because not only do you have to pay for the car, but parking costs $10-15/day, on average. Not to mention gas, tuneups, car problems, and tickets.

In cities where there's an efficient metro system I can see the next generation moving away from cars as a necessity and more towards them as a luxury.

But if you live somewhere like the suburbs of California, a car is absolutely needed because you'd have a hard time finding a job that's less than a 10 minute drive from your apartment/home.

 

I'm 23 , I have a car, but I try to drive as little as possible. In college we almost never drove. We walked, bussed, railed, etc everywhere.i bus to work now too. I wish there was a little more light rail in houston. I can almost get around without a car when I am back home, but I have to do a little more walking than I would ideally like.

 

I really want a car. I'm constantly scrutinizing every new crop of large mid level brand sedans as if I were going to actually buy one. Unfortunately I can only drive trucks (because of financial & medical reasons).