Senior Travelers' Trip Chaining Behavior: Survey Results and Data Analysis

Mohammadian, Kouros; Martina Frignani; Joshua Auld

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/45830 Copy

Description

Title

Senior Travelers' Trip Chaining Behavior: Survey Results and Data Analysis

Author(s)

• Mohammadian, Kouros
• Martina Frignani
• Joshua Auld

Issue Date

2011-08

Keyword(s)

Travel and activity scheduling behavior, GPS surveying, seniors, public transportation, trip chaining

Abstract

The research team conducted a survey of travel and activity scheduling behavior to better understand senior citizens’ trip chaining behavior in the Chicago metropolitan area’s most populous counties. The team used an internet-based, prompted recall activity-travel survey using Global Positioning System (GPS) devices to collect activity-travel diaries and other necessary information. This survey was conducted with 112 people living in 101 households in Northeastern Illinois’ Cook, DuPage, Lake, and Will Counties. Because aging is a growing concern among transportation planners, this survey focused especially on the elderly population, with approximately half of the survey sample consisting of elderly households and the remainder of non-elderly households. Each respondent within these households was asked to carry a portable GPS device ideally for 14 consecutive days and upload the collected data to a website at the end of each day to fill in their activity-travel survey questionnaires. The results suggest that GPS surveys have an improved ability to capture trips that are frequently under-reported; the use of prompted recall provides valuable data about the activity planning and scheduling process itself, which is not found in traditional surveys. Analysis of the decision-making process from the collected data reveals that some aspects of elderly travel behavior are intrinsically distinct from those of the younger population. Results indicate that while age does not affect some aspects of activity-travel behavior, it does affect such aspects as planning horizons, trip flexibility, and trip chaining practices. This study’s results can therefore be used to plan more efficient transit services targeting senior travelers and may help change their attitudes toward public transportation.

Series/Report Name or Number

FHWA-ICT-11-086

ISSN

0197-9191

Type of Resource

text

Language

en

Permalink

http://hdl.handle.net/2142/45830

Sponsor(s)/Grant Number(s)

Illinois Department of Transportation ICT R27-50

Copyright and License Information

No restrictions. This document is available to the public through the National Technical Information Service, Springfield, Virginia 22161

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