ABSTRACT
For a variety of economic, ideological and quality-of-life reasons, so-called millennials (born between the early 1980s and 2000) are rejecting cars and choosing to live in walkable urban communities. This cultural shift is so pronounced among this cohort of young adults that they can justifiably be described as a ‘walking generation’ (Speck 2012: 19). The resurgence of walking is fuelled by a “great reset” in attitudes towards cars (Florida 2010). Millennials, who now outnumber Baby Boomers as America’s largest living population group, no longer buy into the mythology of the car as symbol of freedom, fashion and social status. Instead, they are attracted to the considerable financial savings and personal autonomy of not owning a car. Living without a car also embodies values and a conscious choice to be more sustainable, less consumerist, and to leave a smaller carbon footprint. Being freed from the car gives them agency and a sense of moral authority in a world plagued by global warming and fossil-fuelled wars. When millennials think about where they want to live, many envision pedestrian-friendly communities with good public transportation that makes car ownership obsolete. Increasingly, walkability factors into the decision-making process about viable colleges. Prospective students consult online resources such as https://walkscore.com">walkscore.com or do searches for campuses listed as the “most walkable”. Colleges should capitalize on this generational shift by designing campuses that are safe, comfortable and convenient for walking and by more deliberately mobilizing walking within and beyond the curriculum.
