Millennials, officially categorized as individuals born between 1981 and 1996, actually like to drive, according to a new survey from Hagerty. The classic-car insurer commissioned the study this past spring and found the nation’s largest generation isn’t as anti-driving as once thought.
According to the research, 81 percent of millennials respondents said they “they like, love or are passionate about driving,” which fell in line with Generation X and Baby Boomers (78 percent and 79 percent). Most interesting was 64 percent of millennials said a movement will be needed to preserve driving in the future as self-driving cars come of age. 57 percent of all drivers surveyed also agreed.
And it appears our so-called dying love affair with driving and the car itself may be overstated. 79 percent of all generations said they are passionate about driving;Â 85 percent said driving is part of the American culture; 81 percent said learning to drive is a rite of passage; 61 percent called driving a “positive emotional experience”; and 59 percent said driving is a form of stress release. Over three-quarters said they’d prefer to drive on an open and winding road.
The vast majority, 85 percent, also agreed humans will always want the option to drive themselves and 79 percent don’t want to see driving disappear.
Following the study, Hagerty has begun “Why Driving Matters” to solidify the voice of drivers and enthusiasts as autonomy becomes more prominent.
“One of our goals will be to work with policymakers so that years or even decades from now when the bulk of cars are fully autonomous, the act of driving is protected,” Hagerty said.
Comments
Self-driving cars are the way of the future, and there is no way around that. That said, I’ve long suspected (and hoped) that as we increase self-driving cars, we will also increase track days and the like. When people don’t have to drive, they will want to drive.
Americans love driving, they hate commuting. That’s the difference. Self-driving vehicles will be a great solution to congestion and daily commuting to work. They should serve a purpose similar to the railways and public transportation. Target self-driving tech toward highways. However, for running errands around town or small trips and vacations, Americans will continue to prefer driving themselves. Similarly, another consideration is cities versus suburbs and rural environments. Self-driving cars are more suitable for dense cities (as an extension of public transportation) than suburbs and rural areas where driving is a more enjoyable experience.
There aren’t many self driving success stories, there are several autopilot and an uber death along with many accidents…One of the US’s first self driving vehicles, the downtown Vegas low speed fixed route shuttle got into an accident (wasn’t the shuttles fault)…Overall point being once robo-taxi’s prove to be safer than humans and become affordable, they won’t really take off and it could be the Z generation that is the first to adopt them…Nothing wrong with getting frisky with your signaticant other one the way to work…