Americans Would Prefer to Drive Themselves After the Pandemic, Survey Says

New survey data from IBM’s Institute for Business Value "gives a glimpse into how people will utilize transportation, both public and private, once the world reopens," according to an article by Colin Beresford. IBM surveyed 14,000 people and discovered that many respondents are reevaluating their transportation preferences.

Public transportation, ride-sharing services, and personal transportation are all things that people reported that they were going to approach differently. IBM surveyed 14,000 people (for the automotive portion of the survey) in April, and more than 17 percent said that they intend to use their personal vehicle more often due to COVID-19.

The numbers also include bad news for shared modes of transportation:

Of those who regularly used public transit such as buses, subways, or trains before the pandemic, 20 percent said that they no longer will do so, and another 28 percent said they will use it less frequently. When it comes to ride sharing, a majority of the respondents said they would use the services less often or stop using them completely.

One factor noted in the survey results that might control the potential for gridlock and air pollution to overwhelm the country as people use cars more than ever to socially isolate is the economic uncertainty that means many people who want to buy cars or drive their current cars more often simply won't be able to afford the option.