ABSTRACT
Millennials appear to be driving less than previous generations. While travel by automobile is associated with a host of societal ills including congestion, collisions, and pollution, transportation is also central to accessing opportunities. This chapter synthesizes a body of work addressing Millennial travel patterns over time and space and the factors that drive these dynamics. The author finds that the vast majority of young people rely on an automobiles for nearly every trip and tend to live in areas where automobile travel is the norm. Yet, some young people have latent demand for alternative modes of transportation that they are unable to realize because of infrastructure and other constraints in their neighbourhoods. Further, trends in Millennials’ use of alternative transportation are shaped more by economic constraints than personal preferences. These results lead to two distinct challenges for planners and policymakers. On the one hand, these actors should develop programmes and policies to help those with an unrealized preference for urban living and multimodal or car-free travel to make their preferences a reality. On the other hand, planners and policymakers face the challenge of providing people who are forced to rely on alternative transportation due to economic constraints adequate access to opportunities so that those groups are not excluded from the essential elements of society.
