Public Transportation Usage and Health Benefits: A Literature Review

The main objective of this paper was to analyse comprehensively the urban public transport usage, satisfaction levels and the satisfaction impact on usage of public transport in European Union (EU) countries. Results revealed that the usage of urban public transport in all EU countries is rather low and significantly depends on economic development level. The satisfaction levels measured as comfort and safety, ticket price, frequency and reliability and amenities at stops and stations significantly differed among EU countries as well. In a half of the EU countries, the satisfaction with ticket price and the time to the station had significant impacts on usage of urban public transport. Meanwhile, the satisfaction with reliability, public transport frequency and comfort and safety had significantly influenced urban public transport usage only in one-third of EU countries. In the majority of EU countries, women and older respondents more often tended to use urban public transport. Next to improvement of public transport service, a variety of policy measures should be applied, from awareness rising and image improvement to the review of pricing policies both of public transport and of parking fees.

Public transport users versus private vehicle users: Differences about quality of service, satisfaction and attitudes toward public transport in Madrid (Spain)

A spatial analysis has been conducted in England, with the aim to examine the impact of car ownership and public transport usage on breast and cervical cancer screening coverage. District-level cancer screening coverage data (in proportions) and UK census data have been collected and linked. Their effects on cancer screening coverage were modelled by using both non-spatial and spatial models to control for spatial correlation.Significant spatial correlation has been observed and thus spatial model is preferred. It is found that increased car ownership is significantly associated with improved breast and cervical cancer screening coverage. Public transport usage is inversely associated with breast cancer screening coverage; but positively associated with cervical cancer screening. An area with higher median age is associated with higher screening coverage. The effects of other socio-economic factors such as deprivation and economic activity have also been explored with expected results. Some regional differences have been observed, possibly due to unobserved factors.Relevant transport and public health policies are thus required for improved coverage. While restricting access to cars may lead to various benefits in public health, it may also result in worse cancer screening uptake. It is thus recommended that careful consideration should be taken before implementing policy interventions.

Public transport (PT) usage was severely impacted during the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in up to a 90% reduction in many cities in 2020. Numerous studies have been conducted since then to determine the relationship between individual-level factors (such as gender, attitudes, etc.) and the decrease in PT usage during the pandemic. Despite the evidence provided, findings are dispersed, and for several factors contradictory, making it challenging to reach any generalised conclusion. Furthermore, a comprehensive comparison of the effect sizes among travellers’ factors affecting PT use during this period is yet to be compiled. This paper aims to address these gaps by systematically reviewing the existing evidence and synthesising the effect sizes of travellers’ factors through a meta-analysis. We first identified 36 studies that statistically assessed the contribution of 15 individual-level factors on PT usage during the COVID-19 pandemic. By merging the empirical evidence of those studies, the direction of the association between those factors and PT usage was analysed. Then, after selecting comparable studies, meta-analyses were conducted for each factor to estimate the corresponding pooled effect sizes. The meta-analysis established that car availability, teleworking opportunities and high educational level contributed the most to reducing PT use during the pandemic. These factors increased the odds of reducing PT usage compared with the pre-pandemic by about three times. Factors such as COVID-19 risk perception, gender, high income and health had a moderate effect on the decision to stop using PT. PT habits, travel distance and physical accessibility also influenced PT use during the pandemic. Geographical location and the pandemic period explained part of the heterogeneity found. The findings provided in this study can help policy-makers understand the impacts of travellers’ factors on the decision to reduce PT usage during future pandemics/epidemics and guide public policies accordingly.

COVID-19 instilled a fear of contagion and altered the travel behaviour of public transport (PT) users. Unlike car travel, PT users are in close proximity to many individuals. Efforts to prevent the spread of contagion and ensure the safety of PT users necessitate an understanding of the factors influenced by fear that lead to behavioural changes. Building on existing research regarding the behavioural aspects of PT route choice, this paper posits that PT users adjusted their travel times and transfer frequencies to minimize exposure to contagion. Understanding these adjusted travel times and transfer frequencies is more straightforward than calculating the marginal disutilities associated with in-vehicle travel time and transfer frequency, which is the primary focus of most impedance research in transportation science. The study aims to investigate how PT users modified their travel times and transfer frequencies in response to COVID-19. Specifically, this paper develops new measures of behavioural response: Contagion Impedance (CI) and Contagion Impedance Strength (CIS). These measures indicate how travel time and transfer frequency interact in response to the spread of contagion and the intensity of that interaction. The study analyses individual trip records obtained from smartcard data of PT users in Seoul, comparing data from before and after the COVID-19 outbreak. The analysis revealed that trip chains exhibited reduced travel times and increased transfer frequencies following the significant spread of contagion. This suggests that the fear of contagion while on board was more pronounced than the fear experienced during transfers. Furthermore, the intensity of the interaction increases as the severity of contagion spread intensifies. Additional analyses segmented by age and time of day revealed distinct patterns in the interaction and its intensity. The results clearly indicate that the relationships between in-vehicle travel time and transfer time during a contagious disease differ from those in ordinary situations.

Background and Aim Public transport use has been linked to several health benefits in the general population, and is crucial for older adults’ mobility, due to an age-related decline in mobility, and particularly the ability to use other transport modes. The objective of this systematic review is to determine what is known about the physical and mental health outcomes of public transport use by older adults and to identify remaining gaps in the literature. Methods Five electronic databases were searched in April 2023, with an update in January 2024: Pubmed, Scopus, Web of Science, Ageline and Transport Research International Documentation (TRID). Included were studies that were in English, contained a measure of public transport use as exposure, and any health outcome, including mental or physical health, physical or cognitive function, morbidity, or mortality, among people aged ≥ 60 years. Results Of a total of 2247 unique records that were screened, the full text of 20 was assessed for eligibility and 11 were identified as eligible. Citation search identified two additional studies, amounting to a total of 13 included studies. Significant health outcomes described in assessed studies were decreased obesity and depressive symptoms, and to a lesser extent increased gait speed and cognitive function. Conclusions Initial evidence suggests a positive impact of public transport use on obesity, depressive symptoms, gait and cognitive function, although available research was limited in context and methodology. Further research should focus on determining causality between public transport use and health, and be conducted in more diverse contexts. Transport and urban planners, as well as policymakers, should consider the implications of public transport on the health and independence of older adults. Key messages • Public transport use is linked to reduced obesity and depression among older adults. Links with other health outcomes were reported in several studies, but evidence is scarce. • Current research is limited in terms of quantity, scope, and design. Future research should be conducted in wider contexts, encompass a broader range of health outcomes, and address reverse causality.

BackgroundActive transportation is a crucial sort of physical activity for developing sustainable environments and provides essential health benefits. This is particularly important in Latin American countries because they present the highest burden of non-communicable diseases relative to other worldwide regions. This study aimed to examine the patterns of active transportation and its association with sociodemographic inequities in Latin American countries.MethodsThis cross-sectional study was conducted in eight countries. Participants (n = 8547, 18–65 years) self-reported their active transportation (walking, cycling, and total) using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Sex, age, ethnicity, socioeconomic level, education level, public and private transport use, and transport mode were used as sociodemographic inequities.ResultsParticipants spent a total of 19.9, 3.1, and 23.3 min/day with walking, cycling, and total active transportation, respectively. Mixed and other ethnicity (Asian, Indigenous, Gypsy, and other), high socioeconomic level as well as middle and high education level presented higher walking than Caucasian, low socioeconomic and education level. Private transport mode and use of ≥ 6 days/week of private transport showed lower walking than public transport mode and ≤ 2 days/week of private transport. Use of ≥ 3 days/week of public transport use presented higher walking than ≤ 2 days/week of public transport. Men had higher cycling for active transportation than women. Use of ≥ 3 days/week of public transport use presented higher cycling than ≤ 2 days/week of public transport. ≥6 days/week showed lower cycling than ≤ 2 days/week of private transport use. Men (b: 5.57: 95 %CI: 3.89;7.26), black (3.77: 0.23;7.31), mixed (3.20: 1.39;5.00) and other ethnicity (7.30: 2.55;12.04), had higher total active transportation than women and Caucasian. Private transport mode (-7.03: -11.65;-2.41) and ≥ 6 days/week of private transport use (-4.80: -6.91;-0.31) showed lower total active transportation than public transport mode and ≤ 2 days/week of private transport use. Use of 3–5 (5.10: 1.35;8.85) and ≥ 6 days/week (8.90: 3.07;14.73) of public transport use presented higher total active transportation than ≤ 2 days/week of public transport use. Differences among countries were observed.ConclusionsSociodemographic inequities are associated differently with active transportation across Latin American countries. Interventions and policies that target the promotion of active policies transportation essential to consider sociodemographic inequities.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.Gov NCT02226627. Retrospectively registered on August 27, 2014.

What value do travelers put on connectivity to mobile phone and Internet networks in public transport? Empirical evidence from the Paris region

Public bus passenger safety evaluations in Ghana: A phenomenological constructivist exploration

Vehicle electrification has been recognized for its potential to reduce emissions of air pollutants and greenhouse gases in China. Several studies have estimated how national-level policies of electric vehicle (EV) adoption might bring very large environmental and public health benefits from improved air quality to China. However, large-scale adoption is very costly, some regions derive more benefits from large-scale EV adoption than others, and the benefits of replacing internal combustion engines in specific cities are less known. Therefore, it is important for policymakers to design incentives based on regional characteristics – especially for megacities like Shanghai – which typically suffer from worse air quality and where a larger population is exposed to emissions from vehicles. Over the past five years, Shanghai has offered substantial personal subsidies for passenger EVs to accelerate its electrification efforts. Still, it remains uncertain whether EV benefits justify the strength of incentives. The purpose of our study is to evaluate the health and climate benefits of replacing light-duty gasoline vehicles (ICEVs) with battery EVs in the city of Shanghai. We assess health impacts due to ICEV emissions of primary fine particulate matter, NOx, and volatile organic compounds, and to powerplant emissions of NOx and SO2 due to EV charging. We incorporate climate benefits from reduced greenhouse gas emissions based on existing research. We find that the benefit of replacing the average ICEV with an EV in Shanghai is US$6400 (2400-14,700), with health impacts of EVs about 20 times lower than the average ICEV. Larger benefits ensue if older ICEVs are replaced, but replacing newer China ICEVs also achieves positive health benefits. As Shanghai plans to stop providing personal subsidies for EV purchases in 2024, our results show that EVs achieve public health and climate benefits and can help inform policymaking strategies in Shanghai and other megacities.

The service quality of public transportation in several cities in Indonesia has not fulfilled the expectation yet.There are many negative experiences that have been experienced by the user of public transportation. Thepurposes of this study are to analyze the perception regarding negative experience experienced by the usersof the public transportation in Jakarta, Bandung, Yogyakarta and to compare the perception of negativeexperience in those three cities. The data employed in this study are secondary data. Analysis in this studyapplies the non-parametric statistic method, i.e. k-independent sample and chi-square. The results show thatthere is significant different between perception of the users of public transportation and the negativeexperience in making use of public transportation. Frequencies for each negative experience in those threecities are also significantly different.Keywords: public transportation, quality of service, and perception of negative experience.

ObjectivesAlthough there is some evidence that public transport use confers public health benefits, the evidence is limited by cross-sectional study designs and health-related confounding factors. This study examines the effect...

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the voice of the customer (VOC) of public transport (PT) users and non-users and to identify the role VOC plays in PT service quality analysis and improvement practices.Design/methodology/approachThis research is based on quantitative and qualitative data collection. Quantitative data were collected through two questionnaires; the first is based on ranking data: 192 responses and the second on the Kano model: 46 responses. The qualitative data was obtained through 10 semi-structured interviews with senior management from seven bus companies in the UK.FindingsFindings indicate that VOC differs between PT users and non-users and compared with the perspectives of PT Providers. The research also revealed that VOC plays a crucial role in PT service quality improvement (QI).Practical implicationsThe findings can be used by PT service providers to better understand the VOC of PT users and non-users, which will assist in strategic and QI decision-making. Furthermore, an in-depth study of VOC in PT is provided, which progresses the academic field on this topic and advances research in this area.Originality/valueThis research brings new insight into the most important quality attributes for PT users and non-users. Moreover, the paper fundamentally contributes to the literature, which until now had severely limited input pertaining to the role of VOC in PT and little knowledge of service QI tools and practices in this sector.

This paper aims to explore the likelihood of lost items to be recovered by public transport (PT) users with a focus on the moral values of other PT users in the city of Accra. To achieve this goal, a non-experimental research design was employed to identify the factors influencing PT users’ decisions to return lost items. Data were collected using a revealed preference survey (RP), which was distributed both manually and online using Google Form. The survey consisted of a structured questionnaire with close-ended questions. A total of 603 respondents completed the survey, and the reliability of the questionnaire was verified using Cronbach’s Alpha (CA), yielding a score of 0.804. The study’s findings revealed that religious values (Mean = 4.41, SD = 1.97) and empathy (Mean = 4.37, SD = 1.92) were the two most significant factors that influenced respondents’ decisions to return lost items. Regarding the ‘value of an item’, the high standard deviation indicates that respondents’ perceptions of an item’s value varied greatly and may not have affected respondents decision to return lost but found item. Future research in urban transportation should concentrate on experimental research where reflection of respondents’ true decision to return or keep a found item can be ascertained.

Examining the health effects of public transport use on older adults: A systematic review