Although much has been written about local access to public transport, few studies have examined the role of the perceived environment in promoting transit by considering how the effects of these perceptions differ by neighborhood type. By analyzing the self-reported frequency of transit use and measured neighborhood attributes and using data from Los Angeles County, California, this study examined how the perceptions low-income people have about the walking environment affect their travel behavior. A principal component analysis was used to reduce many overlapping perceptional variables to latent factors that were used in subsequent models of transit use. Four perceptional attributes that affect regular transit use are identified: physical safety, personal safety, amenities, and perceived isolation. The results of this study show that unfavorable perceptions of environmental conditions are independently associated with decreased regular transit use; however, these effects vary among different neighborhood types. Personal safety related to crime and violence is the major concern associated with decreased transit use in mixed land use neighborhoods; in low-density neighborhoods, isolation from the street environment and physical safety concerns, including dangerous crosswalks, are the significant deterrents to public transportation use. Notably, low-income travelers view the conditions of their walking environment as problematic more often than do higher-income travelers, and it appears that transit use by lower-income travelers is more likely to be affected by safety concerns than by other urban design factors of their neighborhood. Findings suggest that safety concerns precede amenity concerns; therefore, enhancing neighborhood safety is the necessary first step to increasing the utility of transit for low-income people.


    Access

    Download

    Check availability in my library

    Order at Subito €


    Export, share and cite



    Title :

    Perceived Neighborhood Environment and Transit Use in Low-Income Populations


    Additional title:

    Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board


    Contributors:


    Publication date :

    2013-01-01




    Type of media :

    Article (Journal)


    Type of material :

    Electronic Resource


    Language :

    English




    Aging Populations and Transit-Oriented Development: Socioeconomic, Demographic, and Neighborhood Trends from 2000 and 2010

    Wood, Brittany S. / Horner, Mark W. / Duncan, Michael et al. | Transportation Research Record | 2016


    Measuring the Neighborhood Benefits of Rail Transit Accessibility

    Lewis-Workman, Steven / Brod, Daniel | Transportation Research Record | 1997


    Measuring the Neighborhood Benefits of Rail Transit Accessibility

    Lewis-Workman, Steven | Online Contents | 1997


    Low Income, Public Transit, and Mobility

    Giuliano, Genevieve | Transportation Research Record | 2005