Nudging towards sustainable urban mobility: Exploring behavioral interventions for promoting public transit

Authors

Avani Aravind
Sabyasachee Mishra
Matt Meservy

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

2024

Subject Area

place - urban, policy - sustainable, ridership - behaviour, ridership - mode choice, planning - methods

Keywords

Public transit, sustainable urban mobility

Abstract

In the quest for sustainable urban mobility, the importance of nudging as a powerful behavioral intervention has garnered increasing attention. Nudging refers to subtle changes in the choice architecture that can influence decisions without imposing restrictions or economic incentives. However, its application in promoting public transportation remains inadequately explored. This study investigates the effectiveness of various nudging treatments in encouraging a shift towards public transit by employing principles from behavioral economics and goal-framing theory. The study randomly assigned participants to four groups: Emotional Nudging, Normative Nudging, Gain Nudging, and a control group. Findings from stated choice experiments indicated that all nudging treatments positively impact the likelihood of choosing public transit. Notably, Gain Nudging emphasizing health benefits exhibited the most significant effects. The results found that it was personal norms that played an important part in decision-making, and social norms have little effect on the likelihood of choosing public transit.

Rights

Permission to publish the abstract has been given by Elsevier, copyright remains with them.

Comments

Transportation Research Part D Home Page:

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/13619209

Recommended Citation

Aravind, A., Mishra, S., & Meservy, M. (2024). Nudging towards sustainable urban mobility: Exploring behavioral interventions for promoting public transit. Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, 129, 104130.