More people would rather use an app to book a ride than buying their own car these days. A new survey showed an increasing number of consumers ditching car ownership in favor of ride-sharing services.
Capgemini conducted its survey among 8,000 people in Brazil, China, India, Italy, France, Germany, the U.K. and the U.S. The results showed one in three people or 34 percent considered ride-sharing via apps was more practical than vehicle ownership. This number went up from 29 percent in last year's survey.
Half the respondents, meanwhile, said they would consider using on-demand taxi apps. This number went up from 34 percent in a survey two years ago, as per Financial Times.
A surprising number of consumers above 50 were more open to using apps and ditching cars (34 percent) compared to the 35-49 age bracket (32 percent). The survey also showed consumers, especially those living in bigger urbanized cities, considered congestion and parking costs as added problems to car ownership.
Another report from RethinkX also predicted a similar trend in app use. It cited that once autonomous vehicles become mainstream, expect a massive shift in car ownership. Also, expect automakers to reduce car production and shift its business to shared cars.
"Why on earth would you build a million-mile car in an individual ownership market?" the report's co-author and technology investor James Arbib said, as per Inverse. "At 10,000 miles a year, that would be a 100-year car. It would be completely obsolete!"
Five years ago, automakers weren't even focused on connectivity and mobility. Today, "ride-sharing services" has been the buzzword and companies are now changing their focus and business model to tap into this growing market.
Aside from Uber and Lyft, car companies like BMW, Ford and Volkswagen already launched its own ride-sharing programs in selected cities. General Motors recently announced the expansion of Maven, its ride-sharing service, in New York. Maven COO Dan Grossman, however, said they are tapping markets of millennials who could eventually consider owning their own cars in the future, as per Fast Company.
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