> I doubt that most people who felt financially secure and could afford a new car wouldn't want to own a new car.
Not that this is anything more than anecdata, but in my peer group, this isn't true. I get around by bike and don't own a car, but could afford a new car if I wanted one, and this is true of many of my friends. Ideas stemming from New Urbanism are a pretty big deal in at least a certain sector of our generation; we're much more likely to consciously decide to prioritize proximity to things over cars, and even if we can afford cars, we're (I'd like to think) more mindful of the sustainability consequences of the modes of transportation that we choose than our parents' generation was; further, I have a fifteen-minute commute and don't have to worry about traffic or parking, and it would take a lot for me to be willing to give that up. This is in Washington, DC, but I know people in similar situations in New York, San Francisco, Portland, and Seattle.
Not that this is anything more than anecdata, but in my peer group, this isn't true. I get around by bike and don't own a car, but could afford a new car if I wanted one, and this is true of many of my friends. Ideas stemming from New Urbanism are a pretty big deal in at least a certain sector of our generation; we're much more likely to consciously decide to prioritize proximity to things over cars, and even if we can afford cars, we're (I'd like to think) more mindful of the sustainability consequences of the modes of transportation that we choose than our parents' generation was; further, I have a fifteen-minute commute and don't have to worry about traffic or parking, and it would take a lot for me to be willing to give that up. This is in Washington, DC, but I know people in similar situations in New York, San Francisco, Portland, and Seattle.