Background: The car has so far played an important role for transporting goods. However, new services emerging from e-commerce may increasingly reduce its relevance as the transporting of goods might no longer be a reason for car use. As a result, e-commerce or the delivery of goods by third-parties can function as potential supplement for car-free households and support a car-free lifestyle. To assess this potential, appropriate segmentation to subgroups is needed to better understand differences in shopping behavior and the linked role of the car. Methods: The presented study from Munich (Germany) provides a comprehensive approach by applying a latent class analysis. The classification revealed six distinct classes with differences in shopping behavior as well as sociodemographic and spatial characteristics. To asses underlying motivations, this approach is complemented through relating the latent classes to attitudes towards shopping and mode choice. Findings: Results show that those people who frequently use their cars also have an affinity for frequent online shopping. This relationship should be considered when discussing whether e-commerce can promote a car-free lifestyle.

Car use in modern cities with a well-developed public transit is more sophisticated to explain only through hard factors such as sociodemographic characteristics. In cities, it is especially important to consider motives for car use. Therefore, we examined two modern cities with a high modal share of non-motorized modes and public transit to answer the question: How do the affective and instrumental motives influence car use in such cities? The used data set was collected in Berlin and San Francisco. To investigate the role of motives, we applied an ordered hybrid choice model (OHCM) with a probit kernel. Based on the OHCM we explained more than 14% of the overall heterogeneity and gave further insights to the decision-making process. The affective motive had a strong influence on car use frequency, whereby the instrumental aspects did not matter. Furthermore, an effect resulting from age could not be determined for the affective motives in these cities. Results suggest people are more likely to use cars for affective motives despite the city’s adversities. For these people it is difficult to achieve a shift to alternative means of transport. The only way to intervene here is through regulatory intervention.