Between January and August, the market research firm analyzed hundreds of thousands of “conversations” on auto-related sites such as Autoblog, personal blogs and social networks such as Twitter and Facebook.

The goal was to gauge the perceptions of Generation Y (those born in the 1980s and early 1990s) toward the automotive industry in general, as well as toward specific vehicle brands. The analysis divided Gen Y into teens (12-18) and “early careerists” (22-29).

According to J.D. Power, “Online discussions by teens indicate shifts in perceptions regarding the necessity of and desire to have cars.”

One interesting comment added:

My boys, ages 20 and 17, have zero interest in cars, getting a license, or owning one, despite our urging. Don’t know what it is, but it’s there. They both ride bikes all over.

Is this truly a generational change or just a reflection of the economy?

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Since then the prices of oil has dropped even more.

Still, the October driving numbers are down according to the Federal Highway Administration:

Americans drove more than 100 billion fewer miles between November 2007 and October 2008 than the same period a year earlier, said U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters, making it the largest continuous decline in American driving in history.

The Secretary noted that Americans drove 3.5 percent less, or 8.9 billion fewer vehicle miles traveled (VMT), in October 2008 than October 2007, making it the sharpest decline of any October since 1971.

Of course during this downturn, bike commuting and public transit ridership have increased.

And, these changes are not just due to high oil prices.  According to an Associated Press report in the Detroit News:

It’s likely the economic crisis is an important factor in the driving decline, said David Goldberg, a spokesman for Transportation for America, a coalition of groups pressing for more alternatives to driving.

If it’s the economy then one might expect Michigan’s driving decline would lead the nation.  It’s not.

In Michigan, September’s vehicle miles traveled numbers dropped 4.3% while the national average was 4.7%.

October dropped 3.3% compared with the national average of 3.5%.

One possible explanation is there are fewer alternatives for Michigan drivers.  Unlike other states, we haven’t invested much in bike transportation infrastructure and public transit. Oregon, which has made those investments, saw driving decreases well above the national average.

And many places in Metro Detroit are low-density, auto-centric, and sprawling.  Those places don’t lend themselves to alternative transportation.  One could expect real estate value in these areas to suffer as people chose to drive less — and to live in places that allow that opportunity.

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The price of oil has dropped 55% since July. Local gas prices are “falling like leaves.”  Daylight is getting more scarce and the temperatures are dropping.   All these factors might mean more bike commuters will be hopping back into their cars.

We could speculate on this, but the results will come out soon enough.

The August report from the Federal Highway Administration was recently released.  In summary, vehicle travel dropped 5.6% in August (a 15 billion mile decrease.)  The culmulative vehicle miles for 2008 are down 3.3% or 67.2 billion miles.

Those decreases aren’t all attributable to more bike commuters.

According to a special report from Inrix, “While consumers react to the high costs of fuel by decreasing all driving, the most significant impact to consumers is the reduction of discretionary driving.”

Even so, the report’s survey found that higher gas prices caused 8% of the respondents to bike (and use scooters) more.  That compares well with increases in car pooling (9%) and public transit (7%).

Inrix also predicts that the drop in gas prices will not lead to significant increases in driving due to the weak economy.   Perhaps the interest in bike will continue

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The Lansing-based Michigan Trails and Greenways Alliance also supports linking trails across the state.

It works with local and state agencies in organizing discussions and outlining criteria for selecting corridors to develop.

Nancy Krupiarz, executive director of the alliance, said her organization gears trail expansion toward a non-motorized network for bicyclists. Widening road shoulders for bike lanes and adding signs to alert motorists are part of the initiative.

“Urban trails get more use as a transportation aspect when they are well-connected to businesses and shipping districts,’ said Krupiarz.

The alliance is involved in a plan to add a non-motorized network of bike paths around Detroit. The system will connect neighborhoods, schools, parks, businesses and other major destinations around the city.

The article also discusses Detroit’s recently endorsed non-motorized master plan.

Link: Capital News Service article

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Sue Moretto and Harriet Saperstein ride in Detroit

It certainly seems like there are more people riding bikes recently. Now Bikes Belong has surveyed bike shops around the U.S. These shops are seeing a significant increase in sales.

Here are the highlights:

The majority of retailers who responded said their sales of transportation-related bicycles, accessories, and service have increased in 2008 compared to 2007:

• 73% said they are selling more bikes.
• 84% said they are selling more accessories.
• 88% said they are selling more service.

Is this increase in sales because of high gas prices? Most retailers who we surveyed think so:

• 95% of shops said customers cited high gas prices as a reason for their transportation-related purchases.
• 80% of retailers said gas prices were helping them sell more bikes for transportation.
• 86% thought accessory sales were getting a boost.
• 89% said they were selling more service because of high gas prices.

Many new customers are dusting off old bikes and bringing them in for repair. There appears to be a surge of interest in riding bicycles for short trips, errands, and commuting.

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Racing in a searsucker shirt is cool, even above 90F

Biking as a kid was simple. You had a bike and you rode it. Somewhere along the way, it began a much more elaborate affair that required special clothes, special shoes, gloves, helmet, sports glasses, and socks with logo messages. Biking was no longer as mainstream or as easy — except in places like Europe or even the City of Detroit.

Fortunately there’s been a trend back to normalcy. High gas prices certainly are encouraging new people commute on bikes.

One trend indicator is the number of group rides where normal clothes are almost expected. The Detroit Synergy rides are certainly that way. If you show up for one of those rides in full-on Tour de France lycra clown gear, you may get publicly teased.

Another similar sounding ride is starting this Saturday at 10pm in Royal Oak. It’s hosted by a new group call Motor City Motorless. Here are the details:

Motor City Motorless is about riding bicyles, hanging out, acting silly, being whimsical, speaking up, and having a good heart. Come out and enjoy a relaxed pace bicycle ride at the end of a week of computers, rude customers, corporate politics and all the other crap that comes with living in a world of sad clowns. Banish the clowns! Send in the Motorless.

Bi-weekly rides starting August 2 @ 10pm. Meet up in Royal Oak at Second and Center in the post office parking lot. Ride with us through Royal Oak, Berkley, Birmingham and Clawson. Bring your glow sticks on this 2 hour ride! Approx. 15 miles, with multiple stops.

e-mail: motorcitymotorless@gmail.com. phone: 248.797.8624 or 248.303.5175

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Many cities… have a well-established infrastructure of bike lanes, bike-friendly public transit systems, and bike parking, making switching from four wheels to two easy for drivers fed up with high gas prices.

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Local shops say customers also are dusting off the bikes and cycles they own, fueling a significant increase in demand for tune-ups and repairs.

“We’re seeing bikes that haven’t seen the light of day in years,” said Liz Szewczyk, an employee at Continental Bicycle Shop in Hazel Park. Not only is the maintenance and repair business booming, she said, but also the sale of commuter bikes — those that come with fenders, lights and other safety features for longer commutes.

“When gas was $3.50 (a gallon), customers started trickling in,” Szewczyk said. “Then it hit $4 and (business) went poof.”

The Detroit Free Press also ran a similar piece yesterday.  It includes an interview with Andy Staub from Beat the Train:

Andy Staub, 42, also relies more on his bike, but for commuting 12 miles from his Dearborn Heights home to his job as a slitter operator at Olympic Steel in Detroit.

He used to bike mainly for sport a couple of days a week. But due to gas prices, he’s added a third day and is considering a fourth.

The commute takes him about 50 minutes by bike, compared with 25 minutes when he drives his 1998 Jeep Cherokee.

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High gas prices and this continued downward trend (which began in 2006) only reinforces the fact that we need to provide more transportation options for Americans, including public transit and bicycling facilities.

Here is the complete press release from the Federal Highway Administation:

Americans Driving At Historic Lows

Eleven Billion Fewer Vehicle Miles Traveled in March 2008 Over Previous March

WASHINGTON – Americans drove less in March 2008, continuing a trend that began last November, according to estimates released today from the Federal Highway Administration.

“That Americans are driving less underscores the challenges facing the Highway Trust Fund and its reliance on the federal gasoline excise tax,” said Acting Federal Highway Administrator Jim Ray.

The FHWA’s “Traffic Volume Trends” report, produced monthly since 1942, shows that estimated vehicle miles traveled (VMT) on all U.S. public roads for March 2008 fell 4.3 percent as compared with March 2007 travel. This is the first time estimated March travel on public roads fell since 1979. At 11 billion miles less in March 2008 than in the previous March, this is the sharpest yearly drop for any month in FHWA history.

Though February 2008 showed a modest 1 billion mile increase over February 2007, cumulative VMT has fallen by 17.3 billion miles since November 2006. Total VMT in the United States for 2006, the most recent year for which such data are available, topped 3 trillion miles.

Additionally, the U.S. Department of Transportation estimated that greenhouse gas emissions fell by an estimated 9 million metric tons for the first quarter of 2008.

The estimated data show that VMT on all U.S. public roads have dropped since 2006. The FHWA’s Traffic Monitoring Analysis System (TMAS) computes VMT for all types of motor vehicles (motorcycles, cars, buses and trucks) on the nation’s public roads. These data are collected through over 4,000 automatic traffic recorders operated round-the-clock by state highway agencies. More comprehensive data are published in the FHWA’s “Highway Statistics” at the end of each year

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This trend isn’t all that recent. As the most recent Federal Highway Administration graph shows, the mileage has flattened during the past couple years and is now on the decline.

Comparing January 2008 to January 2007, the nation drove 1.7% less. Michiganders drove 4% less, a reduction of 350 million miles for one month. Comparing December 2006 to December 2007, Michigan drove 6.2% less or 525 million miles.

Given the recent gas price increases, this downward trend should only grow.

This is good news for bike shops and bike advocates. Why should we spend more money on expanding roads while the vehicle use is declining? Now is the time to invest in alternatives such as on-road bike facilities.

These trends are also good for SMART. Their April ridership numbers continued to climb and are now setting records.

The Suburban Mobility for Regional Transportation (SMART) is posting the highest ridership since its formation in 1967. SMART carried more than 44,000 passengers daily for the month of April. Weekend service on SMART is also at its peak. Overall, ridership on the Fixed Route system has increased more than 6.5% from this time last year.

Unfortunately there is a significant drawback to Americans driving less. Transportation funding relies heavily on fuel taxes. The less people drive (or the higher MPGs their cars get) the less money flows into the system to fund transit, roads, and trails. The funding mechanism is clearly broken.

The Governor created a Transportation Funding Task Force which is looking at alternatives. MTGA, TRU, and other groups are working with this group to ensure biking and transit funding is adequately funded, especially as more Michiganders switch to these modes.

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