Seven in ten Americans plan on hitting the road this summer

NEW YORK – Grabbing your family or friends, jumping in your car, and hitting the road can be an awesome way to spend a memorable vacation. Whether it’s simply a means of reaching your destination or the journey itself is the goal, road trips offer something for everyone. So it’s no real surprise that seven in ten Americans (71%) anticipate taking at least one road trip this summer.

These are among the findings from a Harris Poll of 2,215 U.S. adults (aged 18 and older) surveyed online from April 15-20, 2015. Full results of this study, including data tables, can be found here.

On average, Americans who plan to hit the road will be traveling just under 1,300 miles in total. But who is the most likely to take a trip?

TABLE 1
ROAD TRIPS PLANNED
By Generation & Children in HH

“How many road trips do you anticipate taking over the summer (May – August)? Please consider a road trip to be a trip, by car, which includes an overnight stay.”

Base: All adults

Note: Percentages may not add up exactly to 100 percent due to rounding

• Millennials are more likely than any other generation to be planning at least one road trip this summer (79% vs. 64% Gen Xers, 68% Baby Boomers, & 68% Matures).
• Those who have kids in the house are more likely than those who don’t to head out on the road at least once as well (82% vs. 66%, respectively).

TABLE 2
ANTICIPATED ROAD TRIP DISTANCE
By Generation & Children in HH

“In total, roughly how many miles do you expect to travel on road trips this summer? Please factor in the combined round trip distance for all the trips you’re anticipating.”

Base: Planning 1+ Summer Road Trips

Note: Percentages may not add up exactly to 100 percent due to rounding

TABLE 3a

IMPACT OF VEHICLE FEATURES ON ROAD TRIP ENJOYMENT
Grid Summary

 “Regardless of whether you plan on taking a road trip this summer, how much impact, if any, do you think each of the following features would have on how enjoyable a summer road trip can be?”

Base: All adults

Advanced vehicle features: safety hazard or savior?
In today’s world, vehicles have more advanced features to assist us in operation than ever before. With navigation systems that direct us where to go and self-driving capabilities that get us there with little intervention, it’s becoming increasingly likely that either your own vehicle, or another on the road with you, has at least one of these features.

TABLE 3b
IMPACT OF VEHICLE FEATURES ON ROAD TRIP ENJOYMENT
Summary of “More Enjoyable (NET)”
By Generation & Children in HH

“Regardless of whether you plan on taking a road trip this summer, how much impact, if any, do you think each of the following features would have on how enjoyable a summer road trip can be?”

Base: All adults

Note: Percentages may not add up exactly to 100 percent due to rounding

TABLE 3c
IMPACT OF VEHICLE FEATURES ON ROAD TRIP ENJOYMENT
Summary of “More Enjoyable (NET)”
By Road Trips Planned

“Regardless of whether you plan on taking a road trip this summer, how much impact, if any, do you think each of the following features would have on how enjoyable a summer road trip can be?”

Base: All adults

Americans have the most confidence in a blind spot monitor system (when the vehicle advises the driver when there are other vehicles in its blind spots) to increase safety levels as 86% say they would feel safer on a road trip if their own vehicle had this and 83% say they’d feel safer knowing other vehicles on the road with them have this feature. This optimism continues for lane departure warning systems as well, with 84% saying they would feel safer if their vehicle had this and 83% saying the same about other vehicles on the road.

When it comes to perceived safety, adaptive cruise control may have a leg up on traditional. Equal percentages of Americans see adaptive cruise control as providing increased safety during a road trip whether it’s their vehicle with the feature (77%) or another driver’s on the road (76%). Traditional cruise control sees slightly lower numbers, albeit a majority still believes this increases safety on a road trip (62% in their own vehicle vs. 56% in other drivers’ vehicles).

TABLE 4a
SAFETY VALUE OF OWN VEHICLE FEATURES
Grid Summary

“Still thinking about road trips, how much more or less safe would you feel on a road trip if your vehicle had each of the following features?”

Base: All adults

Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding.

TABLE 4b
SAFETY VALUE OF OWN VEHICLE FEATURES
Summary of “More Safe (NET)”
By Generation & Children in HH

“Still thinking about road trips, how much more or less safe would you feel on a road trip if your vehicle had each of the following features?”

Base: All adults

A built-in navigation system is touted by 73% of adults as making them feel “more safe” should the feature be in their own vehicle, with an admittedly smaller majority (62%) indicating the same when the feature is in another driver’s vehicle.

Self-driving capabilities, on the other hand, lack the same safety confidence as displayed for the other vehicle features. While it is true that 42% each say this feature would make them feel more safe whether it were in their vehicle or another, 35% say it would make them feel less safe to have it in theirs and 39% say the same for another driver having such a feature.

TABLE 4c
SAFETY VALUE OF OWN VEHICLE FEATURES
Summary of “More Safe (NET)”
By Road Trips Planned

“Still thinking about road trips, how much more or less safe would you feel on a road trip if your vehicle had each of the following features?”

Base: All adults

Over half of Americans believe a summer road trip would be more enjoyable in a vehicle with the ability to act as a mobile Wi-Fi “hotspot” (55%) or with “infotainment” systems that can connect to smartphones (52%). While they may boost the fun factor on a long trip, what effect do these features have on safety? Americans are nearly split on whether each makes them feel “more safe” or has no impact on their safety during a road trip.

• Four in ten (40%) say having connectivity between smartphones and vehicle “infotainment” systems in their own vehicle would make a road trip “more safe,” while 39% say it would have no impact. Two in ten (21%), however, say it would make them feel “less safe.”
• Thirty-eight percent say the ability for their own vehicle to act as a mobile Wi-Fi “hotspot” would increase their feeling of safety and 40% state no impact. Similar to smartphone connectivity, roughly two in ten (22%) feel this feature would make them feel “less safe.”

TABLE 5a
SAFETY VALUE OF OTHER DRIVERS VEHICLE FEATURES
Grid Summary

“And how much more or less safe would you feel on a road trip knowing other vehicles on the road had each of the following features?”

Base: All adults

Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding.

TABLE 5b
SAFETY VALUE OF OTHER DRIVERS VEHICLE FEATURES
Summary of “More Safe (NET)”
By Generation & Children in HH

“And how much more or less safe would you feel on a road trip knowing other vehicles on the road had each of the following features?”

Base: All adults

TABLE 5c
SAFETY VALUE OF OTHER DRIVERS VEHICLE FEATURES
Summary of “More Safe (NET)”
By Road Trips Planned

“And how much more or less safe would you feel on a road trip knowing other vehicles on the road had each of the following features?”

Base: All adults

It may not come as a surprise that Millennials are more likely than all other generations to say these features would make their trip more enjoyable.

• Vehicles with the ability to act as a mobile Wi-Fi “hotspot”: 73% of Millennials say more enjoyable vs. 58% Gen Xers, 41% Baby Boomers, & 35% Matures
• Vehicles with “infotainment” systems that can connect to smartphones: 73% vs. 53%, 36%, 31%

Parents are also more likely to believe these features would boost the enjoyment of a summer road trip compared to those without kids.

• Vehicles with the ability to act as a mobile Wi-Fi “hotspot”: 70% of those with children in household say more enjoyable vs. 47% of those without
• Vehicles with “infotainment” systems which can connect to smartphones: 69% vs. 43%.

Theodore Koumelis

Co-Founder & Managing Director - Travel Media Applications | Website | + Posts

Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.

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