Urban youth: a marked preference for individual modes of transport

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In the blink of an eye

Although they mainly use public transport (8/10), urban youth are tough on this mode of travel: 4/10 say that it is the mode of transport they least like. So, 2/10 use it less often than before, and 1/10 have simply abandoned it.
Conversely, individual modes of transport (car, bike, scooter, etc.) are on the rise: 6 out of 10 users consider them to be their preferred modes of transport. Biking (personal or self-service) is the mode of transport that is experiencing the greatest growth, since 6 out of 10 urban young people say they use it more often than before.
Concretely, 1 out of 2 young people use bicycles in order to reduce their environmental impact. Even if the current infrastructures are satisfactory (for 8 out of 10 young people), many expectations remain to develop its use: new bike paths (5/10), secure parking spaces (4/10), purchase aids (4/10)...

*Methodology: Survey carried out by Discurv among 1134 young French urbanites, aged 15 to 34, inhabitants of one of the 10 largest French cities, representative of this population in terms of sex, age and city. This survey was conducted online from April 21 to May 08, 2023, via Facebook and Instagram.

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A great mix of modes of transport among urban youth

Public transport is the mode of transport most used by urban youth (78% of them), but that is not why they exclude other forms of mobility: 37% use their personal car and 24% use their personal bike or scooter. Although less democratized, alternative modes of transport are beginning to emerge among this young generation: 12% use self-service bikes, 9% carpool, and 5% use self-service scooters. In this great mix of uses, public transport appears to be the least popular mode of travel for young urban people (4/10). This observation is in contrast to individual transport (car, bike, scooter, etc.) where 6 out of 10 users consider them - conversely - as their preferred mode of transport.

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Public transport, used reluctantly?

In general, 8 out of 10 young people say they are satisfied with the public transport offer in their city. However, there are very different levels of satisfaction depending on the city studied: while Strasbourg (94%), Nantes (93%) and Bordeaux (89%) have the highest satisfaction rates, Marseille (44%), Paris (21%) and Paris (21%) and Nice (21%) and Nice (21%) are - conversely - the cities with the lowest satisfaction rates. If they are used, it is above all for their practicality (68%) and their speed (50%). But they also bring other advantages: being able to do other things during the trip (27%), being able to reduce your environmental footprint (27%), or even benefiting from advantageous rates (20%). However, 21% of public transport users say they take them less often than before, and 10% have even completely abandoned this mode of transport. Above all, they cite overcrowding during peak hours (57%), but also a lack of comfort (27%), or a lack of flexibility (27%). Again, these reasons for abandonment vary greatly depending on the cities studied:

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Reasons for abandoning public transport by city

Strasbourg | Marseilles | Lyon | Lille

Overattendance (84%) | Too expensive (36%) | Unsuitable offer (50%) | Insecure (17%) | Too expensive (36%) | Unsuitable hours (57%)

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Biking, a mode of travel that offers real benefits

29% of young people use bicycles for their daily trips (20% use their personal bike and 12% use a self-service bike). A habit that has only gained ground in recent years, since 64% of urban young people say they use their personal bike more often than before (+/- 3 years). We also find a similar observation with self-service bikes, since 61% say they use them more often than before!

Concretely, urban youth see 3 major advantages in cycling:

The opportunity to practice physical activity (63%) and to have fun (52%)
Benefit from a mode of travel that is both fast (62%) and practical (55%)
Participate in the protection of the environment (47%)... far ahead of the financial dimension (33%)

In fact, the vast majority of urban youth (83%) consider that the cycling infrastructures offered in their city are adapted to their cycling practice. However, this perception varies considerably between the cities studied, such as for example in Marseille, where only 57% of young people believe that the infrastructures put in place meet their needs. At the same time, and regardless of the city concerned, half of urban youth (50%) believe that the creation of new cycle paths is a necessary step in the democratization of this mode of transport, so that they can use their bikes more often on a daily basis.

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Free-floating, ideal for local travel

Like cycling, the use of free-floating services is increasing sharply among young people: 6 out of 10 young people say they use self-service bikes more often than before (+/- 3 years) and 5/10 use self-service scooters. If we zoom in on self-service bikes: Toulouse & Paris are the 2 cities where we have the most followers, with 19% and 17% of users respectively. At the bottom of the pack, we find Nantes, Montpellier & Nice, which have 7% of users of self-service bicycles. If we zoom in on self-service scooters: this time it is the city of Lyon that comes out on top, with 12% of users, closely followed by Bordeaux (8%). Nice and Toulouse, for their part, have 1 to 2% of users. Although they are both used for fairly short periods of time (10 to 30 minutes), self-service bikes & scooters are used for very different purposes. While self-service bikes are used on a regular basis (34% a few times a week) and rather for practical purposes (school, work, race, etc.), self-service scooters are used more occasionally (47% a few times a month) and are primarily focused on leisure trips (walks, outings, etc.).

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High expectations from public authorities

In fine, 1 young urban person out of 2 claims to systematically favour soft modes of transport. They therefore have strong expectations of the public authorities to stimulate their daily practice: make public transport free or reduce the cost of public transport (70%), develop the network of secure bike paths (50%), benefit from assistance in the purchase of a bike or scooter (40%) or even create new secure parking spaces for bikes & scooters (37%).

One thing is certain, all mobility players have great challenges to meet in order to best meet the expectations of young urban people, and thus maximize the anchoring of soft mobility in daily journeys.

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To conclude, a word from the expert:

“The observation is clear: young French urban residents are primarily turning to public transport for their daily trips, but are increasingly turning to individual modes of transport (car, bike, scooter, etc.). While the price factor remains essential, and the environmental impact is increasingly taken into account, urban youth are primarily looking for convenience in their daily trips: they want to go as quickly as possible, as quickly as possible, as short as possible. This is evidenced by the diversity of the modes of transport they use, with on average nearly 3 different means of transport used on a daily basis.

They have several options: car, bike, scooter, personal or shared vehicles (self-service). By putting the cities of Strasbourg and Marseille face to face, it is clear that the quality of the offer and the available infrastructures has a direct impact on the choice of young urban people in terms of mobility.

It is therefore up to the various mobility players, whether public or private, to imagine the mobility of tomorrow: young people will follow!” Maxens PietfroidConsumer Insight Manager, Discurv

Link to the infographic: https://urlr.me/ZGyg1

About Discurv, Discurv is a research institute that collects

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