Three-quarters of millennials in Europe vote for eco-friendly cars: Study

More than three-quarters of millennials in Europe (nearly 76 percent) consider driving eco-friendly cars as the best choice to make their lives more environmentally friendly, according to a Nissan European study investigating millennials’ attitudes towards electric and hybrid vehicles.

Millennial is a name given to the generation born between 1982 and 2004.

Revealed by Gareth Dunsmore, Nissan’s Director of Electric Vehicles at the 2016 edition of the FutureFest in London, the study probed the views of 2,500 European millennials (aged 18 to 34) across the UK, France, Italy, Germany, and Spain.

The study found that as a generation, millennials are willing to try new things, challenge processes, and think differently about the future. As such, the report showed that the environmental concerns of millennials aren’t ‘smaller scale’ issues like recycling (24 percent) or overflowing landfills (14 percent) but global issues such as climate change (53 percent) and air pollution (42 percent). To help solve these issues, they are willing to make bold changes such as switching to an energy provider dedicated to eco-friendly solutions (62 percent), or supporting brands that are committed to being more environmentally friendly (53 percent).

Sarwant Singh, senior partner, Frost & Sullivan and member of Nissan’s Intelligent Motoring Advisory Board, said: “The millennial demographic surveyed here has the potential to be hugely influential in determining the future of transport and sustainability. We have consistently found in our own research that they are early adopters of new technology, much more environmentally friendly than previous generations and generally willing to make sacrifices and lifestyle changes in line with their personal values and beliefs.”

Surprisingly, the majority of millennials surveyed already owned a car (77 percent). Although they might not be driving electric vehicles now,  they are in the market for future driving technology with nearly two out of three likely to buy a hybrid car in the next 10 years, and over half saying they would buy an electric car in that timespan.

Also read: 84% Millennials believe SUVs have become more fuel efficient and greener over the last five years