[IK6SPEED]

America's Love Affair With Driving Takes a Back Seat

Despite a strong economy, Americans are driving fewer miles than they did before 2007-09 recession

By David Harrison | Photographs by Caitlin O'Hara for The Wall Street Journal

Dec. 24, 2019 5:30 am ET

PHOENIX—The light rail glides through downtown, disgorging commuters with a jangle of bells every 12 minutes. Just a few blocks away, Interstate 10 is backed up for miles.

"It's so difficult to drive here every single morning, so I park my car at Mesa and I take the light rail," said Jackie Rios, a freshman at Arizona State University's downtown campus as she waited to board a train on her way home to suburban Chandler.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/america...at-11577183402

[Bingham]

Good read. Tks for as sharing.

I actually run more errands and take the long way home to enjoy my seat time in the 2.

B.

[N54Yankee]

Love affair with driving cooling? Not in my life or in my circle of friends, family.
Today we’re taking a nice long drive in the Corvette afternoon before tucking it away for the winter, just because we enjoy it. I can’t speak for the country as a whole nor should the WSJ. Big city dwellers putting their personal spin on things again me thinks.

[IK6SPEED]

Originally Posted by N54Yankee

Love affair with driving cooling? Not in my life or in my circle of friends, family.
Today we're taking a nice long drive in the Corvette afternoon before tucking it away for the winter, just because we enjoy it. I can't speak for the country as a whole nor should the WSJ. Big city dwellers putting their personal spin on things again me thinks.

There is data to back it up. Not a big city spin.

[Salty Dog]

Originally Posted by IK6SPEED

There is data to back it up. Not a big city spin.

FAKE NEWS!

[N54Yankee]

Originally Posted by IK6SPEED

There is data to back it up. Not a big city spin.

All too often, data is manipulated to fit an agenda.

[IK6SPEED]

Originally Posted by N54Yankee

All too often, data is manipulated to fit an agenda.

When you have ALL data pointing in the same direction, that's a good one.

[N54Yankee]

Originally Posted by IK6SPEED

When you have ALL data pointing in the same direction, that's a good one.

All the data is not pointing to America’s love affair is waning. There re many different factors as to why things happen. The fact that a paper tries to steer readers a particular way to those predisposed lemmings to be living everything they read as gospel is what they thrive and make money on. That’s a good one is right.

There are many factors that can account for what’s going on. Including high car prices, many are keeping cars longer, cars last longer then they used to, high interest rates and none of it has to do with losing ones ‘love’ of cars.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/neilwin.../#17e370a31063

Not to mention, car sales have always been cyclic. The sky is falling crowd is always quick to jump to conclusions that aren’t proven fact, merely opinions that are often politically based. That’s a good one also.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/...es-since-1951/

Many new cars sold the past couple years due to the economy booming means new cars aren’t being purchased at this time.
https://money.cnn.com/2017/01/04/new...016/index.html

[IK6SPEED]

Originally Posted by N54Yankee

All the data is not pointing to America's love affair is waning. There re many different factors as to why things happen. The fact that a paper tries to steer readers a particular way to those predisposed lemmings to be living everything they read as gospel is what they thrive and make money on. That's a good one is right.

There are many factors that can account for what's going on. Including high car prices, many are keeping cars longer, cars last longer then they used to, high interest rates and none of it has to do with losing ones 'love' of cars.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/neilwin.../#17e370a31063

Not to mention, car sales have always been cyclic. The sky is falling crowd is always quick to jump to conclusions that aren't proven fact merely opinions that are often politically based. That's a good one also.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/...es-since-1951/

Seems you are the one trying to skew data.

Of course sales have been cyclical, down in recessions and up in good times. Except, you ignore falling new car sales in the best economy of the last 50 years. And your source ignore the continued slide in 2019 by omitting the data since 2018, which shows a peak in 2017.

You ignore that used car lots are full and cannot get rid of them.

You ignore gasoline tax revenues are down.

You ignore vehicle registrations are down.

You ignore data showing millennials not obtaining Driver's License and Uber/Lyft use.

You ignore all the cut and dry data only to use data that can be adapted to your spin.

[allinon72]

Before reading any article, ask yourself, does the media outlet subscribe to the same "accepted narrative" as all the other main media propagators? If yes, proceed with caution. There might be some truth in there, but it's twisted up like a pretzel.

[IK6SPEED]

Originally Posted by allinon72

Before reading any article, ask yourself, does the media outlet subscribe to the same "accepted narrative" as all the other main media propagators? If yes, proceed with caution. There might be some truth in there, but it's twisted up like a pretzel.

The WSJ is in business to supply Economic information for business and investors.

If they were "spinning the data", they would have gone the way of so many other newspapers and publications.

[allinon72]

Originally Posted by IK6SPEED

The WSJ is in business to supply Economic information for business and investors.

If they were "spinning the data", they would have gone the way of so many other newspapers and publications.

They've gone about 50% of the way.

[c1pher]

Even as a kid, I could see how having my own car was one of those ultimate expressions of freedom. And as I could finally start driving, I really could appreciate the act of driving, not just to get somewhere, but to go nowhere, when I wanted for as long as I wanted.

As politicians try to conjure up ways to get rid of single family homes and self driving cars among other things, I fear these freedoms are slowly evaporating away.

[Flacht3]

Just as some folks are saying the media is biased in writing such an article, posting this onto a message board that's mainly (if not fully) frequented by folks who love driving will also get you biased reactions to the content.

[IK6SPEED]

Originally Posted by allinon72

They've gone about 50% of the way.

Suggest you look at their circulation numbers over the years.

[AlpineWhite_SJ]

Less drivers means less traffic so I won’t complain

[SteveinArizona]

Originally Posted by allinon72

Before reading any article, ask yourself, does the media outlet subscribe to the same "accepted narrative" as all the other main media propagators? If yes, proceed with caution. There might be some truth in there, but it's twisted up like a pretzel.

The WSJ is owned by Rupert Murdoch. Hardly someone who uses the "accepted narrative".

But, on the other hand, there are men in white uniforms chasing jorunalists around.

[c1pher]

Originally Posted by IK6SPEED

Seems you are the one trying to skew data.

Of course sales have been cyclical, down in recessions and up in good times. Except, you ignore falling new car sales in the best economy of the last 50 years. And your source ignore the continued slide in 2019 by omitting the data since 2018, which shows a peak in 2017.

You ignore that used car lots are full and cannot get rid of them.

You ignore gasoline tax revenues are down.

You ignore vehicle registrations are down.

You ignore data showing millennials not obtaining Driver's License and Uber/Lyft use.

You ignore all the cut and dry data only to use data that can be adapted to your spin.

Dealers sure don’t act like they can’t get rid of cars. At least the ones I’m interested in, they don’t seem to be interested in pricing aggressively or negotiating.

[HighlandPete]

Interest in driving, particularly among the young, is falling off in the UK. Fewer are learning to drive and get a licence, that's the trend.

No agenda, (Data from GOV UK), simply happening for a multitude of reasons and other priorities taking folks interest.

[IK6SPEED]

Originally Posted by HighlandPete

Interest in driving, particularly among the young, is falling off in the UK. Fewer are learning to drive and get a licence, that's the trend.

No agenda, (Data from GOV UK), simply happening for a multitude of reasons and other priorities taking folks interest.

Yes, days of max car has peaked and now declining Worldwide.

[pennsiveguy]

Originally Posted by AlpineWhite_SJ

Less drivers means less traffic so I won’t complain

Right on. I'd be perfectly happy if there were just me and a few dozen other enthusiast drivers so I'd have some folks to swap stories with. The rest of the dreck on the roads can go home and never sully the roads with their fuckery again, as far as I'm concerned.

[clee1982]

No surprise there, though given America population density (the lack of) outside city center US mile driven is probably still going to be fairly significant for the foreseeable future