Abstract
This exploratory study aims to achieve a better understanding of the users-related factors that affect the choice of routes in public transport (PT). We also look at what can motivate route and modes changes towards alternatives in a real situation. We investigated the experience of 19 users of PTs, using the critical incident technique (Flanagan in Psychol Bull 51(4):327, 1954). We asked participants to report incidents (i.e. situations) in cases they were very satisfied or dissatisfied with their choice. For both situations, the case of their usual route and case of an alternative were considered. A total of 91 incidents were collected and analysed using a multiple correspondences analysis. Additionally, users’ profiles were characterized and superposed to the analysis of incidents content. The main results are as follows. First, the user’s choice of PT route depends on the context (i.e. aim of the travel, time of day). Second, taking an alternative to the usual PT route or using a route combining different transport modes is determined by the context and by factors related to the pleasantness of the travel (e.g. to accompany a friend along the travel). Finally, depending on the user’s profile (i.e. combination of attitude towards PT and demographic variables), the factors taken into account to make the choice of a PT route are related to the efficiency or the pleasantness of the trip. These results show the importance of the contextual factors and the users’ profiles in route choice. They suggest that these factors should be further taken into account in new tools and services for mobility.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Abou-Zeid M, Witter R, Bierlaire M, Kaufmann V, Ben-Akiva M (2012) Happiness and travel mode switching: findings from a Swiss public transportation experiment. Transp Policy 19(1):93–104. doi:10.1016/j.tranpol.2011.09.009
Anastassova M, Burkhardt JM, Mégard C, Ehanno P (2005) Results from a user-centred critical incidents study for guiding future implementation of augmented reality in automotive maintenance. Int J Ind Ergon 35(1):67–77. doi:10.1016/j.ergon.2004.08.005
Beirão G, Cabral JS (2007) Understanding attitudes towards public transport and private car: a qualitative study. Transp Policy 14(6):478–489. doi:10.1016/j.tranpol.2007.04.009
Bisseret A, Sebillotte S, Falzon P (1999) Techniques pratiques pour l’étude des activités expertes. Octarès, Toulouse
Brisbois X (2010) Le processus de décision dans le choix modal: importance des déterminants individuels, symboliques et cognitifs, Doctoral dissertation, Université Pierre Mendès-France-Grenoble II
Butterfield LD, Borgen WA, Amundson NE, Maglio AST (2005) Fifty years of the critical incident technique: 1954–2004 and beyond. Qual Res 5(4):475–497. doi:10.1177/1468794105056924
Chowdhury S, Ceder A (2013) A psychological investigation on public-transport users’ intention to use routes with transfers. Int J Transp 1(1):1–20. doi:10.11648/j.pbs.20130201.12
Eriksson L, Forward SE (2011) Is the intention to travel in a pro-environmental manner and the intention to use the car determined by different factors? Transp Res D: Transp Environ 16(5):372–376. doi:10.1016/j.trd.2011.02.003
Ettema D, Friman M, Gärling T, Olson LE, Fujii S (2012) How in-vehicle activities affect work commuters’ satisfaction with public transport. J Transp Geo 24:215–222. doi:10.1016/j.bbr.2011.03.031
Flanagan JC (1954) The critical incident technique. Psychol Bull 51(4):327
Friman M (2010) Affective dimensions of the waiting experience. Transp Res F: Traffic Psychol Behav 13(3):197–205. doi:10.1016/j.trf.2010.04.006
Gandit M (2007) Déterminants psychosociaux du changement de comportement dans le choix du mode de transport: le cas de l’intermodalité. Thèse de doctorat de troisième cycle en Psychologie sociale expérimentale de l’Université Pierre Mendès France, Grenoble 2
Hine J, Scott J (2000) Seamless, accessible travel: users’ views of the public transport journey and interchange. Transp Policy 7(3):217–226. doi:10.1016/S0967-070X(00)00022-6
Hunecke M, Blöbaum A, Matthies E, Höger R (2001) Responsibility and environment ecological norm orientation and external factors in the domain of travel mode choice behavior. Environ Behav 33(6):830–852. doi:10.1177/00139160121973269
Klöckner CA, Friedrichsmeier T (2011) A multi-level approach to travel mode choice–how person characteristics and situation specific aspects determine car use in a student sample. Transp Res F: Traffic Psychol Behav 14(4):261–277. doi:10.1016/j.trf.2011.01.006
Law ELC, Roto V, Hassenzahl M, Vermeeren AP, Kort J (2009) Understanding, scoping and defining user experience: a survey approach. In: Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on human factors in computing systems, ACM, pp 719–728
Le Roux B, Rouanet H (2010) Multiple correspondence analysis. SAGE, series quantitative applications in the social sciences. Thousand Oaks, SAGE, p 163
Litman T (2008) Valuing transit service quality improvements. J Public Transp 11(2):43–63
Mann E, Abraham C (2006) The role of affect in UK commuters’ travel mode choices: an interpretative phenomenological analysis. Br J Psychol 97(2):155–176. doi:10.1348/000712605X61723
Popuri Y, Proussaloglou K, Ayvalik C, Koppelman F, Lee A (2011) Importance of traveler attitudes in the choice of public transportation to work: findings from the Regional Transportation Authority Attitudinal Survey. Transportation 38(4):643–661. doi:10.1007/s11116-011-9336-y
Rubens L, Gosling P, Moch A (2011) Favoriser le report modal: connaître les raisons liées au choix d’un mode de déplacement pour le changer. Prat Psychol 17(1):19–29. doi:10.1016/j.prps.2009.12.002
Timpf S (2002) Ontologies of Wayfinding: a traveler’s perspective. Netw Spat Econ 2(1):9–33
Verplanken B, Aarts H, Van Knippenberg A (1997) Habit, information acquisition, and the process of making travel mode choices. Eur J Soc Psychol 27(5):539–560
Vredin Johansson M, Heldt T, Johansson P (2006) The effects of attitudes and personality traits on mode choice. Transp Res A: Policy Pract 40(6):507–525. doi:10.1016/j.tra.2005.09.001
Acknowledgments
We would like to thank all public transports users who participated in the study. We also want to thank Philippe Bonnet for his help on statistical analyses.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Grison, E., Gyselinck, V. & Burkhardt, JM. Exploring factors related to users’ experience of public transport route choice: influence of context and users profiles. Cogn Tech Work 18, 287–301 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10111-015-0359-6
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10111-015-0359-6