Welcome back! This week, we’re looking at what’s keeping Gen Z from getting behind the wheel.
When musician Olivia Rodrigo released her debut single “Drivers License” in 2021, the song was an instant hit. At the time, it broke the most single-day streams for a non-holiday song on Spotify, spending multiple weeks at number one and becoming a bona fide Gen Z anthem.
But when it comes to their own driver’s licenses, Gen Zers are somewhat less enthusiastic. American Gen Zers are driving less than previous generations, at least for now: in 1997, 43 percent of 16-year-olds and 62 percent of 17-year-olds (aka older millennials) had driver’s licenses. By 2020, those numbers had dropped to 25 and 45 percent, respectively, according to data from the US Federal Highway Administration.
There’s plenty of speculation for why that might be. It could be because today’s teens report being so much more anxious than any other age group. They might rely on their family or friends to get them around (though many of them may be content with staying at home, using social media and video games to connect with their peers instead). Or maybe they don’t want to drive because they’re looking for a sustainable option, such as public transportation, ride-sharing, or e-scooters. It’s also possible that a sputtering economy and inflation tinged their entry into adulthood, discouraging spending on big-ticket items such as cars.
Yet, the open road has lured other reluctant drivers before. When millennials reached driving age, there were plenty of headlines calling them the “go nowhere” generation. That wasn’t exactly true; millennials did eventually start driving, albeit less than Gen Xers and boomers.
So, are we there yet? It’s too early to tell whether the no-driving trend will hold with Gen Z, especially given the changes happening in the mobility and automotive markets. The global hailed-mobility market is expected to reach revenues as high as $860 billion in 2030, up from $130 billion in 2019, particularly as consumers continue to look for sustainable and cost-effective transportation options, according to McKinsey partner Kersten Heineke and coauthors. The autonomous-vehicles market will evolve, too, although consumers still need to be convinced of self-driving cars’ safety. And for those Gen Zers who decide that driving just isn’t for them, they can keep themselves busy with TikTok in the passenger seat—or get behind the wheel in the metaverse.
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