Disability-specific factors in paratransit system continuance: Implications for transportation policy and practice in low-income developing countries

Abstract

ObjectiveTransportation systems are a basis of disability-related activity involvement in society. In Tehran, the capital of Iran, a paratransit system for disabled people has been operating since 2013, but the market share is gradually losing for reasons unknown to practitioners. Although paratransit systems for people with disabilities exist in many cities, no comprehensive study has been completed to identify attitudinal and contextual barriers to the continuance intention to use the system, particularly in a low-income developing country. Thus, due to limitations faced by qualified experts in this field, the adoption of efficient transportation policy and engineering interventions is still limited. Methods and analysisThe Technology Continuance Theory (TCT) is employed in this study as a structural equation modeling framework to analyze and quantify relationships based on the data gathered by face-to-face interviews. The mediation/moderation analyses in this paper reveal that (i) stress, (ii) self-efficacy, (ii) social isolation, (iv) mode captivity, (v) experience of usage, and (vi) type of disability are of prime importance in disabled people's intention to reuse the paratransit system. Main findingsStress is examined through serial mediation analysis. The analysis reveals that stress due to the system's uncertain attributes significantly influences satisfaction. Self-efficacy and social isolation are presented for the moderation and moderated-mediation analyses. It is found that the urban mobility performance of the system is of more importance to disabled people with lower self-efficacy (high social isolation); however, their stress is not significantly reduced even by increasing the usefulness of the system. The mode captivity is also redefined in this context and entered as a moderator. It is found that, for captive riders, satisfaction does not have a dominating role in the intention to use the paratransit system, as the users are constrained by taking what is available or nothing. The usage experience is another moderator, and our analysis shows that attitude is a determinant of behavior for long-term users, while satisfaction with a transient effect is a dominating factor for short-term ones. Finally, the users are categorized by type of disability, and the moderation analysis shows that for people with physical disabilities, the system's performance is the most influential factor in their satisfaction, while for people with sensory disabilities, other factors related to amenity, safety, and support are also prominent. ImplicationsThis paper ultimately presents explicit and thorough policy considerations and practical implications. The article's concluding remark will comprise a disclosure of previously undisclosed insights that underlie the study's findings.