The demand for cars in developing countries

Eduardo A. Vasconcellos

Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, 1997, vol. 31, issue 3, 245-258

Abstract: The paper analyzes the misunderstandings that have occurred in dealing with the private vs public transportation issue in developing countries. Both the economic view of the car as just a "free consumer desire", and the psychological views of the automobile as symbol of "freedom", "status" and "power" are criticized. An alternative sociological approach to the automobile is proposed, based on transport technology as embedded in the contemporary pattern of social reproduction. It is argued that the demand for automobiles, in addition to its utility, has been induced by urban, economic and transportation policies directed towards selected social sectors -- the middle classes -- who in turn perceive the car as an essential tool for their social reproduction. The same policies keep transit alternatives impractical. Consequently, there are important political (and not psychological) obstacles to alternative, less auto-oriented urban transportation policies.

Date: 1997
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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