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Title:

Real-Time Riders? Millennials, Smartphone Use, and Public Transportation Ridership

Accession Number:

01660476

Record Type:

Component

Abstract:

Travel via public transit and non-motorized modes and the proportion of carless households increased in the U.S. from 2009 to 2014. However, this trend reversed, with overall transit ridership shrinking starting in 2015. This trend has been attributed to “millennials”, who tend to drive less and use other modes more often than previous generations at the same stage in life. However, several factors such as the presence of children, residential location, and the use of information technology use may influence public transportation ridership trends. Further, smartphones provide individuals with constant real-time information on transportation modes, including public transit information, with likely effects on mode choice. This paper explores factors affecting public transit use in California, using survey data collected among millennials and members of the preceding Generation X. The study investigates the impact of generational effects and smartphone applications used to access information on the available modes of transportation for a trip on transit use for non-commute/leisure purposes. Using an ordinal logit model, this study finds that public transit use can be largely explained by the impacts of sociodemographics, residential location, and technology use. Individuals’ use of transportation-related smartphone apps is associated with a statistically significant and positive effect on the frequency of use of public transit. This study contributes to understanding the relative permanence of millennials’ use of public transit, in addition to the role of communication technologies and smartphone apps in shaping public transit use.

Supplemental Notes:

This paper was sponsored by TRB committee AP030 Standing Committee on Public Transportation Marketing and Fare Policy.

Report/Paper Numbers:

18-06527

Language:

English

Authors:

Tiedeman, Kate
Circella, Giovanni

Pagination:

18p

Publication Date:

2018

Conference:

Transportation Research Board 97th Annual Meeting

Location: Washington DC, United States
Date: 2018-1-7 to 2018-1-11
Sponsors: Transportation Research Board

Media Type:

Digital/other

Features:

Figures; References; Tables

Uncontrolled Terms:

Millennials

Geographic Terms:

California

Subject Areas:

Data and Information Technology; Passenger Transportation; Planning and Forecasting; Public Transportation

Source Data:

Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting 2018 Paper #18-06527

Files:

TRIS, TRB, ATRI

Created Date:

Jan 8 2018 11:41AM