The Italian and the car

What do you think if I sai "car"?!

I am not a fortune teller, but I am ready to bet that the first thing that comes to your mind is the car!

What’s strange?! Before answering, I invite you to search for the definition of "machine" on any dictionary. 

If you did it, you must have noticed that this term does not refer to the car, or rather not only! 

The word "machine", in fact, defines any "device or apparatus constructed by appropriately connecting two or more elements in such a way that the relative motion of these transmits or even amplifies human or animal force or natural forces (such as those produced by water and wind), performing predetermined tasks with time or fatigue savings." (Source: https://www.treccani.it/vocabulary/machine/)

I think it goes without saying that this definition includes thousands of devices and machinery, which have nothing to do with the car.

Even thouh this, when you say "machine" Italian think about the car! Have you ever wondered why?! I assure you that in the other languages it is not like this, in fact, the terms that translate "machine" in the broad sense are not synonymous with "car" and they dont't even remind about it!

The reason for this emblematic aspect has historical and cultural roots dating back to the period of the so-called "Italian economic miracle", that is to say, to the 50s and 60s. In that historical moment Italy was crossed by unprecedented economic and social changes, which in a short time led it to become one of the largest industrial powers in the world! In those years enthusiasm, optimism and confidence in the future used to rule and it is not difficult to understand why. Italy had got out of the nightmare of the great war and finally could leave behind everything that it had generated: collapse of industrial production, rampant unemployment, cities reduced to rubble, etc...

Since the end of the 1950s, the Italian economy has been growing exponentially. Italian GDP grew by 6.3% each year, with all that resulted in terms of employment, standard of living and expectations.

Then the automobile began to establish itself in popular culture. If initially there were only a few who could afford it, over time, it has become the main object of desire of Italians, turning into a real "status symbol" of well-being, emancipation and freedom. The Italian has literally fallen in love with this invention, seen as the means to access modernity, to the point that from 1956 to 1965 cars in circulation have gone from 1 million to 5 million! It took very little time for this vehicle to position itself in their mind as THE MACHINE par excellence! 

This escalation has continued over the years and today Italy is one of the most motorized countries in the world, with an average of 65 cars per 100 inhabitants and everything that follows in terms of travel habits, models of urban development and air health in cities.

The results are clear to everyone: most Italians prefer to travel with their car, almost all cities have been designed to "measure cars" and in many cases there are worrying levels of air pollution. As you may have guessed, there’s very little to be proud of our record. Did you know that at European level cars are responsible for about 25% of CO2 emissions? It is probably no coincidence that Italy is the first European country for premature deaths from nitrogen dioxide and the second for deaths from fine particulate matter.

That is why we can no longer afford to underestimate this theme! Thus there are many initiatives to raise public awareness of the importance of changing mobility habits in favour of low-impact means of transport. The biggest obstacle, however, continues to be the dominant mentality. In fact, most Italians still struggle to overcome the paradigm that sees in their car the best way to move! Asking them to give up their beloved "travelling companion" seems unthinkable. Yet it would be enough to reflect on the numbers to realize how these habits are inconvenient! 

Just to mention the most eloquent ones, did you know that on average cars remain stationary for 95% of the time? Does it seem absurd to you? But it’s all true.

Another emblematic figure concerns the length of journeys, which in 75% of cases are less than 10 km. 

And the question here arises: does it makes sense to get involved in instalments, insurance, testing, revisions, etc... if on average you move almost always for less than 10 km and you use your own vehicle for 5% of the time?

Luckily, the new generations, who are in stark contrast to what has been said so far, are giving hope to a greener future. According to Millennials and digital natives having a car is not at all a priority! Most of them consider access to mobility services to be more important than private vehicle ownership! Surely the digital revolution played a fundamental role in this regard as well as the sharing economy and the platform economy. Now there are many examplese of shared mobility, we can be found them in almost all Italian cities. Think about car pooling, scooters, bikes and electric scooters! Have you ever tried them? I assure you that they are a great alternative to private transport and, if you alternate or integrate them with a nice walk or a nice ride, they can make you save a lot of money, improving your health!

That’s why I think the love story between the Italian and the car is destined to enter into crisis. And as in any "couple crisis" the possibilities to come to an end are 2: stop the relationship or find a compromise to take it to a new level!

Honestly, I doubt that the first hypothesis is right for us, at least not in the short term.

The second hypothesis, however, implies that at least one of the two partners (the Italian or the car) shows that he wants to change. And in fact, in this case, they’re both doing it. What do I mean? The Italian begins to be increasingly attentive to sustainability (also thanks to the new generations) and the car is evolving towards models with low environmental impact (think of electric cars). 

To return to the title of the article, therefore, we can answer positively to the question: our almost secular love story seems to be coming to an end! Do you agree with that? 

What is not yet known, is how it will be the new dawn... certainly, we will see some good.

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