Commuting and its spillover effects on subjective well-being: Evidence from China

Abstract

The relationship between commuting and subjective well-being has long been studied in the transportation field. However, few studies have examined the complex relationship between commuting characteristics that affect subjective well-being, nor have they focused on the spillover effects of commuting on other life domains. To fill these gaps, we built a structural equation model using large-scale survey data across 29 provinces in China to explore the mechanisms by which commuting characteristics affect subjective well-being. The results suggest that the complex relationship between commuting mode, time, and cost reduces the differences in commuters’ subjective well-being across different commuting modes. Commuting distance affects commuting choices and indirectly produces different subjective well-being outcomes. The impact of commuting spills over into the health, work, and community domains, affecting subjective well-being. Based on these findings, we provided policy recommendations for urban and transportation planning in Chinese cities.