The car in 2023 | Not heaven for youngsters

Over the past 30 years, the rate of possession of a driver’s license has declined among 16 to 24 year olds in Quebec, as it has everywhere in the Western world. Does the car appeal less to young people than before? In part, perhaps, but the numbers are more nuanced. And the attitude of young people towards driving too.

“In an ideal world, I would never need to drive a tank. A graduate in construction, Jérémy Vidal works in a custom fabrication workshop in Carignan, a suburb of Montreal.

Without a driver’s license, he goes there by bus from Saint-Lambert, where he lives. The 24-year-old is a sharp critic of American car culture. “It’s not a viable long-term solution,” he says, citing the countless construction sites, the mountains of money invested in road maintenance, the dangerous traffic for pedestrians and cyclists… “I understand that in the region, it is mandatory to have a car. But in town, I don’t understand. »

The phenomenon has been observed for twenty years in the Western world. Millennials (born between 1984 and 1996) and now Gen Zers (born between 1997 and 2012) are less likely than their elders to get their driver’s license.

Quebec is no exception to the trend. The rate of possession of a driver’s license or a probationary license among 16 to 24 year olds was 61% in 1992 compared to 54% in 2022, according to data from the Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec.

Surprisingly, young men are largely responsible for the decline. For what ? Sociologist Yoann Demoli recalls that it has already been frowned upon for a man to “be driven by a woman”. Conversely, today’s young women are encouraged to get their license.

In recent years, the media have reported on a generational divide: with the arrival of carpooling applications, young people are no longer attracted to cars, which they consider too polluting and expensive.

“Unlike previous generations, young people do not see the car as a means to freedom or as a crucial stage in their lives”, observed a recent article by the Washington Post. “The driving license has lost its luster”, headlined the French magazine Point in 2021. “The car is no longer a dream”, proclaimed The Press in 2017.

But now, do young people really shun the license out of disinterest? According to experts, the reality is more nuanced.

Money, a brake

“This reduction in the driving license, I think it has been misinterpreted”, immediately poses the French sociologist Yoann Demoli.

First, young people study longer and start a family later than previous generations, notes the expert. Could they just be less eager to own a car? It’s a hypothesis.

Money can also be a barrier to obtaining a permit. In Quebec, the cost of the driving course was set at $1,024 in January 2023. “It’s a lot when I have a lot of other stuff to pay before,” said Vanessa San Martin, 29.

For the past five years, she has lived in Sherbrooke, where she works in the kitchen of a ramen restaurant. If she doesn’t have her license, it’s mainly a question of money. “Even after your license, you have a million other things to pay: insurance, license, license plate…”, she lists.

A German study from 2020 assessed the mobility attitudes and behaviors of young people according to their social background. His findings?

Young adults from a precarious socio-economic background are limited in their modes of transport (the automobile being one of the most expensive), while those from the middle class continue to aspire to life in the suburbs, designed for the car.

The young people who show less attachment to cars are above all those from well-to-do backgrounds, living in big cities and with a high level of education.

fear of driving

Arielle Desgroseilliers, 23, started her driving lessons a few years ago, before stopping everything. It’s because she has an “uncontrollable” fear of driving. “Before my practical lessons, I didn’t sleep the nights before, because it terrified me to drive,” she confides.

Young people today are much more aware of the dangers of the road than their grandparents’ generation was, when wearing seat belts was not yet compulsory, notes Yoann Demoli.

Born and raised in Montreal, Arielle never felt the urgent need to own a car. To get around, the student turns to public transport, walking or occasional carpooling. “Perhaps in Montreal, I look less for ways to fight that fear, because it’s not something that slows me down on a daily basis,” she reflects aloud.

Few options

In the remote suburbs or in the region, it would be a different story. Without the many options offered by big cities, many young people without a driver’s license will undoubtedly one day be forced to take one.

Jérémy Vidal came to the same conclusion. The young man had completed his driving lessons during the pandemic, but had never taken the exam for personal reasons. If he wants to fulfill his dream of teaching in a construction trade school, he must first gain experience on construction sites, which is unthinkable without a permit. “It’s unfortunate, because I’d really rather not,” he admits.

After all these years, Vanessa San Martin is also considering taking driving lessons. With her spouse (also without a permit), she wants to start a family. “I don’t want kids until at least one of us has his license,” she says.

Contradictory attitudes

In short, we can no doubt speak of a certain “disaffection” of young students and city dwellers for the car. However, as soon as you leave the big cities, freedom passes (again) by car.

Young people’s behaviors don’t change much, but attitudes do. In 2017, Jérôme Laviolette interviewed college students about their relationship with the automobile as part of a research project. He observed that young people are generally more critical than their elders about the consequences of the automobile on traffic, the environment and the pocketbook. Paradoxically, the symbol of freedom and independence associated with the automobile remains.

The English sociologist John Urry said that the automobile is the most powerful social structure, recalls Professor Yoann Demoli. “We cannot fight against social structures. »