Active travel and telework in Sweden: Teleworkers walk more, but cycle less

Abstract

• Teleworkers walk more and cycle less compared to non-teleworkers in Sweden. • The largest active travel differences can be found for full-day teleworking. • Similar active travel behavior is also found on non-(tele)working days. • Teleworkers are more likely to walk for service purposes. • Teleworkers are less likely to use a bicycle for commuting. There is extensive literature on how telework influences daily travel, mainly focusing on daily travel demand. What is overlooked is the possibility that telework provides scope for more active travel on foot or by bicycle. The aim of this article is to investigate whether teleworkers are more likely to walk or cycle than non-teleworkers. We use representative microdata from the Swedish National Travel survey 2011–2016 and disaggregate the analysis in novel ways, including separating walking and cycling. We conclude that in general teleworkers walk more but cycle less. Teleworkers walk more for service purposes, and cycle less when commuting. The strongest correlation between telework and active travel are found when teleworking for a full day. However, similar active travel behavior is shown on non-(tele)working days, indicating that teleworking is habit-forming when it comes to active travel.