Traffic Safety Perception, Attitude, and Feeder Mode Choice of Metro Commute: Evidence from Shenzhen

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020 Dec 15;17(24):9402. doi: 10.3390/ijerph17249402.

Abstract

Like many other transit modes, the metro provides stop-to-stop services rather than door-to-door services, so its use undeniably involves first- and last-mile issues. Understanding the determinants of the first- and last-mile mode choice is essential. Existing literature, however, mostly overlooks the mode choice effects of traffic safety perception and attitudes toward the mode. To this end, based on a face-to-face questionnaire survey in Shenzhen, China, this study uses the two-sample t-test to confirm the systematic differences in traffic safety perception and attitudes between different subgroups and develops a series of multinomial logistic (MNL) models to identify the determinants of first- and last-mile mode choice for metro commuters. The results of this study show that: (1) Walking is the most frequently used travel mode, followed by dockless bike-sharing (DBS) and buses; (2) Variances in traffic safety perception and attitude exist across gender and location; (3) Vehicle-related crash risks discourage metro commuters from walking to/from the metro station but encourage them to use DBS and buses as feeder modes; (4) DBS-metro integration is encouraged by the attitude that DBS is quicker than buses and walking, and positive attitudes toward the bus and DBS availability are decisive for the bus-metro and DBS-metro integration, respectively; and (5) Substantial differences exist in the mode choice effects of traffic safety perception and attitudes for access and egress trips. This study provides a valuable reference for metro commuters' first- and last-mile travel mode choice, contributing to developing a sustainable urban transport system.

Keywords: China; Shenzhen; attitude; dockless bike-sharing; last mile; multinomial logistic; objective factor; perception; subjective factor; traffic safety; vehicle-related crash.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Accidents, Traffic / prevention & control
  • Adult
  • Attitude
  • Bicycling
  • China
  • Choice Behavior
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Perception
  • Safety
  • Transportation*
  • Walking