Identifying heterogeneity in university students’ transport mode choice

Abstract

College students are argued to have some interest in adopting alternative mobility solutions. Even though previous works have examined the transport mode choice of college students, the inclusion of shared mobility services is scarcely found. Thus, this study aims to examine the transport mode choice of university students by revealing the heterogeneity in transport mode usage frequency incorporating socio-demographic and travel characteristics as covariates in the latent class cluster analysis (LCCA) framework. The analysis results in four clusters. Clusters of public transport users and walkers are mostly characterized by lower-income students who can reach the university in less than 11 minutes. Private car users mostly fall into a cluster where students generally come from higher-income families. Policies supporting sustainable transportation among college students are discussed, including the mobility points around the university and public transport stops.