Satisfaction with transport and enjoyment of the commute by commuting mode in inner Sydney

Abstract

Issue addressed: Travel satisfaction has become an increasingly popular construct for the assessment and monitoring of transport systems and services. However, satisfaction may not adequately assess emotion or mood towards walking and cycling, especially when infrastructure is biased towards motor vehicle modes. In this exploratory study we sought to examine the associations of both satisfaction with transport and enjoyment from the commute to work or study by commute mode in an Australian inner city context where transport mode choices are readily available. Methods: As part of the Sydney Transport and Health Study, 675 baseline study participants (2013) were invited to complete an online questionnaire in September/October 2014 and 512 did so (76% response rate). Participants who did not travel to work were removed from analyses, giving complete data for 473. Participants provided data on usual travel mode to work or study, satisfaction with transport, enjoyment from their commute, and demographics and neighbourhood factors. Results: The main mode of travel to work or study in this inner city sample was public transport (41%), followed by motor vehicle (27%), walking (21%) and cycling (10%). Most participants were satisfied with their transport (82%), with little variation by mode. Walkers (49%) and cyclists (52%) reported far higher levels of enjoyment from their commute than car drivers (14%) or public transport users (10%), with an adjusted odds ratio of 6.18 (95% confidence interval 3.10-12.29, P < 0.001) for walking and an adjusted odds ratio of 6.15 (95% confidence interval 2.68-14.08, P < 0.001) for cycling. Conclusions: People who walked or cycled to work or study in inner Sydney reported higher levels of enjoyment from their commute compared with those who drove. This suggests enjoyment may be another benefit of active travel.So what? Focusing on 'enjoyment' associated with walking or cycling to work may be a positive motivator to encourage active travel.

Changes over time in population level transport satisfaction and mode of travel: A 13 year repeat cross-sectional study, UK

“…Other recent studies have shown that it is often subjective attitudes which influence commuter travel satisfaction, and those who feel travel has a purpose rather than a ‘waste of time’ are often more satisfied with travel ( Ye and Titheridge, 2016 ). Environmentally friendly commuters are often the most satisfied with their travel and many studies have shown that cycling and walking commuters have the greatest levels transport satisfaction ( Rissel et al, 2015 , Smith, 2016 , Ye and Titheridge, 2016 ). Although our study did not show active travel having the greatest reported transport satisfaction overall, the proportion reporting satisfaction in transport when using this mode did increase over time compared to satisfaction with car transport.…”

“…Two thirds of participants were in the upper non-manual social classes, and as with all regional surveys limitations should be applied when applying these results to other developed regions. Other world-wide studies in Belgium ( De Vos et al, 2016 ), Australia ( Rissel et al, 2015 ), China ( Ye and Titheridge, 2016 ), Canada ( St-Louis et al, 2014 ) and the USA ( Smith, 2016 ), have shown increased transport satisfaction when using active travel modes compared to those who drive, some also for public transport. However, understanding transport satisfaction is a complex task and is determined by multiple factors ( St-Louis et al, 2014 ), including the origin and destination of a trip on a local, city and world-wide scale where transport infrastructure differs.…”

Modelling user satisfaction in public transport systems considering missing information

“…In Rahman et al, (2016) for example, surveys were conducted to 2008 public transport users during the months of June and July 2015, with a survey consisting of two sections, one for obtaining socio-economic data and another for obtaining the satisfaction of 21 attributes of the system. In Rissel et al, (2016) a total of 512 online surveys were conducted during the months of September and October to obtain information on the mode of transport used by users and the level of satisfaction they had with it. In Guirao et al, (2016) 850 face-to-face surveys were carried out, of which 813 were valid complete answers.…”

Water Transit and Ferry-Oriented Development in Sweden: Comparisons with System Trends in Australia

“…Brisbane and Sydney’s water transport are also integrated into their public transport networks, which include bus, urban rail, ferry and, in Sydney, light rail. For a detailed overview of Australian networks see previous research on Brisbane ( 2 , 13 ) and Sydney ( 14 ).…”