Travel behaviour change research: A scientometric review and content analysis

Abstract

A travel behaviour change approach complements hard transport measures to develop more sustainable transport systems. Travel behaviour change is a growing field of research, with a range of theories, behaviours and tools being studied. Consequently, a wide-angled review is critical for synthesising knowledge in this field. This study conducted a scientometric review of travel behaviour change literature, identifying the main characteristics, key journals, research categories, keywords, authors, institutions, countries and cited references. In addition, a content analysis was conducted to identify current research trends and gaps in the field and develop a future research agenda. The scientometric component of the review analysed the bibliographic data of 323 academic records. The review identified that the field has a long history and has grown significantly since 2011. The content analysis of recent research (n = 17 articles) supported previous findings that travel behaviour change interventions can result in changing behaviour. The main target behaviours are private motor vehicle use, bicycling and public transport. Notably absent is trip avoidance research. Information dissemination strategies are the main tools trialled, including personalised travel plans, websites and apps. Finally, we propose six research directions for the travel behaviour change field: multiple research methods; identify effective intervention components; locally contextualised research; further segmentation research; longer-term studies; and trip avoidance research. Trip avoidance research is most urgent, as experiences due to COVID-19 have shown, working from home could have a significant positive impact on the sustainability of our transport systems.