01697784

Component

The relationship between information and communication technologies (ICT) and travel behaviour has been investigated for several decades. Different analytical approaches and datasets have been utilised to disentangle their complex connections, although empirical results are mixed. What has not been well examined, however, is the role of basic skills such as numeracy and literacy in determining the relationship between ICT use and travel behaviour. Basic skills are important life skills and related to ICT use, as well as the level of understanding about information people will acquire. Moreover, the lack of basic skills may be associated with social exclusion and travel horizon. In this study, the authors examined the complex relationship between the three factors simultaneously using the integrated Multimedia City Data survey, conducted by the Urban Big Data Centre at the University of Glasgow, UK. The authors adopted a Bayesian approach to jointly model the frequency of different types of Internet use, and total travel distance per traveller, with respect to a measure of literacies or competencies in the form of numeracy and financial literacy questions. The authors find that people with a higher level of these literacies use the Internet more frequently and travel further than those with fewer skills. Moreover, the result shows a complementary relationship between the frequency of Internet use and total travel distance. Combined with the above results, this implies that literacies such as financial and numeracy are directly associated with total travel distance, as well as being indirectly associated with travel behaviour through Internet use.

This paper was sponsored by TRB committee ADB20 Standing Committee on Effects of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) on Travel Choices.

19-04458

English

14p

2019

Transportation Research Board 98th Annual Meeting

Digital/other

Figures; References; Tables

Bayes' theorem; Comprehension; Internet; Mathematics; Travel behavior; Travel surveys; Traveler information and communication systems; Trip length

Glasgow (Scotland)

Data and Information Technology; Planning and Forecasting; Transportation (General)

Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting 2019 Paper #19-04458

TRIS, TRB, ATRI

Dec 7 2018 9:37AM