Determinants of foregoing drivers license in Japanese Gen Y individuals: Financial, lifestyle and transportation alternatives.

Résumé:

A literature review of the recent statistics of driver’s license permits in industrialized and emerging economies among young adults by Delbosc and Currie (2013,2014) identifies six potential causal factors for the decline in the pursuit of a driver’s license in young people: life stage, affordability, location and transport, drivers licensing regulations, attitudes and, e-communication.
This study investigates the specific effects of these 6 categories in a study of Japanese university students.
The results suggest that the major causal factors obtaining a driver’s license was directly determined by the need of a car for transportation purposes. It was further also established that not having a driver’s license was largely influenced by the cost of driving in general (purchase, license, insurance and gas price). The availability of alternative transportation (friends, parents with a car or public transportation) strengthened the rationale for not getting a driver’s license. The lifestyle factor was less of a determining factor.