The forces that impel personal vehicle use continue. Overall, the suburbanization of population and jobs not only continues, but has accelerated in pace. This is an increase in share of job growth from the 1970-1980 period. The flow patterns with a suburb as a destination account for substantial shares of growth in recent times. These tendencies can be overstated because of a failure to examine these patterns in sufficient demographic detail.
Saturation is a characteristic almost exclusively found among the White non-Hispanic population.
There is still substantial room for growth in these characteristics among the Black, Asian, and Hispanic populations. These groups constitute the major sources of growth in vehicle ownership and use in the future. It cannot be assumed that the differences between these groups and the national average are racial, ethnic, or gender-based in character. Rather, age, income level, household size, and the location and type of residence will be the governing factors in future commuting patterns. As the socioeconomic profiles of these groups change, their commuting behavior will shift accordingly.