More than 60% of people ‘not interested’ in shared mobility

A YouGov mobility survey of 2,400 people has found that 63% of people are ‘not interested’ in taking advantage of shared mobility schemes such are ride hailing or car sharing services.

The survey conducted on behalf of technology company Stripe garnered the response to a question which offered participants 10 options and asked them what their motivations would be for using a shared mobility scheme.

An aversion to any kind of shared mobility emerged as the most common response, with the next largest motivation cited as “environmental concerns”, attracting just 20% of the vote.

The result reflects assertions that the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated a trend towards car ownership and personal mobility.

But it comes just days after Transport Minister Trudy Harrison MP told the CoMoUK mobility conference that the UK must move away from “20th century thinking centred around private vehicle ownership” and towards shared mobility.

Harrison said that shared mobility must become “the norm” as she outlined support for a future transport system which, she claimed, would introduce “greater flexibility, with personal choice and low carbon shared transport”.

Addressing last week’s Collaborative Mobility Conference (CoMoUK), the Transport Minister said it was “staggering” that nearly two-thirds of car trips are taken by lone drivers, and said the UK is at a “tipping point” where shared mobility will soon be a “realistic option for many of us to get around”.

Asked about their motivation for wanting to own a car in the recent YouGov survey conducted for Stripe – a technology company that builds economic infrastructure for the internet, working with the likes of KwikFit, Green Flag and Hyundai – respondents were clear.

Almost two-thirds (70%) cited ‘Convenience’, 69% Freedom/Independence’ and 62% ‘Flexibility’.

Just 19% said that ‘Hygiene Purposes’ were the reason for their desire to own a car.

Stripe claimed that the key headlines from its polling showed that transport was changing rapidly, built around consumer convenience, preference and cost efficiency

Nearly a third (30%) of 18 to 24-year-olds people rank environmental purposes (30%)  as a higher priority for why they would use a ride sharing app than anything else, including cost (25%).

A quarter of people would now rather use a single monthly subscription for all their transport services than pay for every trip individually, meanwhile, rising to over a third of 18 to 35-year-olds

Max Roberts, UK Country Lead at Stripe, said: “The motor industry is one of the most technologically savvy industries in the world, but until recently had missed the possibilities in internet commerce. That's now changing.

"The next generation of drivers prioritise climate over cost, don’t feel the need to own their own car as long as they have the right access to one, and are time-poor, so love the simplicity of managing their mobility needs – from insurance to in-car entertainment, in one place.

“This is how a lot of internet commerce already works today, but it's only now that motoring companies are adapting to these preferences.

“Many of the industry's most famous brands, from KwikFit and Green Flag, to Hyundai and Toyota are working with Stripe to bring all kinds of internet-first ideas and business models to market.

“Stripe is proud to play a major role in helping dealers, manufacturers and other parts of the motor industry adapt to the demands of internet enabled consumers.”