Willingness to pay for travel information

Abstract

Improved travel information received via electronic sources can inform people about travel conditions and help them make travel decisions. The personal benefits of high quality travel information may motivate individuals to pay for information. This study analyzes travelers’ willingness to pay for better quality information received from a traveler information system offered through a public–private partnership in the San Francisco Bay Area. The data were collected in 1997 through a computer-aided telephone interview of individuals who called traveler advisory telephone system (TATS) and were willing to be interviewed ( N=511). The survey results indicate that the average number of times per month the respondents called TATS was 4.80 (TATS was a free service at the time). The average use of the system would decline if the service was not improved but a service charge was initiated. People indicated that they were more willing to pay for a customized service. The impacts of travel information, travel context and socioeconomic variables on willingness to pay for information were analyzed by estimating a random-effects negative binomial regression model of revealed and stated TATS calling frequency. The results indicate that customized travel information, longer trips, worktrips, and listening to radio traffic reports are associated with higher TATS calling frequency and with greater willingness to pay for information. Overall, the consumer response to purchasing travel information services seems cost-sensitive and future efforts can focus on commercialization of travel information, beginning with where demand for information is relatively inelastic and improvement or customization of travel information is achievable.