Peak Car: A Generational Approach

In ‘peak car’ literature, lower shares of car use among young adults are often explained by claiming that Generation Y has a different attitude towards mobility, being more pro-environment and less car oriented. However, a generational comparison of mobility attitudes in Flanders, Belgium, proved this is only partly true. Generation Y is indeed the least car-oriented, but also the least pro- environment compared to older generations. Moreover, Generation Y might indeed be less addicted to their cars but this is only in comparison with the oldest generation of Boomers and not compared to Generation X with whom differences are negligible. Moreover, logistic regressions pointed out that attitudes are important determinants of modal choices for active leisure activities. However, this does not only apply to Generation Y but also to the older generations. These findings indicate that such sustainable mobility attitudes cannot be attributed to Generation Y as a unique feature of this generation.