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The lifetime cost of driving a car

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  • Gössling, Stefan
  • Kees, Jessica
  • Litman, Todd

Abstract

The car is one of the most expensive household consumer goods, yet there is a limited understanding of its private (internal) and social (external) cost per vehicle-km, year, or lifetime of driving. This paper provides an overview of 23 private and ten social cost items, and assesses these for three popular car models in Germany for the year 2020. Results confirm that motorists underestimate the full private costs of car ownership, while policy makers and planners underestimate social costs. For the typical German travel distance of 15,000 car kilometers per year, the total lifetime cost of car ownership (50 years) ranges between €599,082 for an Opel Corsa to €956,798 for a Mercedes GLC. The share of this cost born by society is 41% (€4674 per year) for the Opel Corsa, and 29% (€5273 per year) for the Mercedes GLC. Findings suggest that for low-income groups, private car ownership can represent a cost equal to housing, consuming a large share of disposable income. This creates complexities in perceptions of transport costs, the economic viability of alternative transport modes, or the justification of taxes.

Suggested Citation

  • Gössling, Stefan & Kees, Jessica & Litman, Todd, 2022. "The lifetime cost of driving a car," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 194(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:194:y:2022:i:c:s0921800921003943
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2021.107335
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Schröder, Daniel & Kirn, Lukas & Kinigadner, Julia & Loder, Allister & Blum, Philipp & Xu, Yihan & Lienkamp, Markus, 2023. "Ending the myth of mobility at zero costs: An external cost analysis," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    2. Humpe, Andreas & Gössling, Stefan & Haustein, Sonja, 2022. "Car careers: A socio-psychological evaluation of aspirational automobile ownership," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 164(C), pages 156-166.
    3. Miner, Patrick & Smith, Barbara M. & Jani, Anant & McNeill, Geraldine & Gathorne-Hardy, Alfred, 2024. "Car harm: A global review of automobility's harm to people and the environment," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    4. Francesco Filippi, 2022. "A Paradigm Shift for a Transition to Sustainable Urban Transport," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(5), pages 1-27, March.
    5. Gössling, Stefan & Kees, Jessica & Litman, Todd & Humpe, Andreas, 2023. "The economic cost of a 130 kph speed limit in Germany," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 209(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Cost-benefit-analysis; Car cost; Car ownership; Subsidies; Transport behaviour; Transport policy;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth

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