The kinematic properties of gas and stars in the Solar neighborhood are described in terms of the line-of-sight component of a three-dimensional first order Taylor series expansion of the local velocity field. The types of object analysed are (1) 21 cm absorbing clouds (2) intercloud medium (3) main sequence B stars closer than 200 pc (4) B stars of luminosity class ranging from I to IV (5) main sequence A stars (6) K-giant stars. The least squares fitting procedure used to derive the 10 coefficients describing each of the six velocity fields was essentially the same, so that a valid comparison could be made. Marked departures from circular motion are found in most cases, but the only systematic trend is a correlation between ∂u/∂x (u being the velocity component along the x-axis directed towards the Galactic center) and stellar spectral type, where the gas behaves like a medium ‘younger’ than the early type stars. Our analysis of the gas indicated that the standard plane-parallel model provided a good description for the intercloud medium, but was inadequate for the absorbing clouds. A velocity ellipsoid description of the residuals is presented for each type of object. The influence of the Gould belt on local kinematics is discussed.