A47 Active travel commuters report high levels of enjoyment from their commute compared with car or public transport users. Issue 2 (June 2015) - Rissel, Chris
Abstract: Background: There is a growing literature on the negative physical and mental health associated with different modes of commuting to work. There are pros and cons for each travel mode, (eg public transport is crowded, slow, but direct; cycling is healthy but can be dangerous) with driving to work often associated with the most negative outcomes (eg stress, physical inactivity). However, many people still chose to drive and presumably derive some enjoyment from it (eg alone or "me" time, listening to radio/music etc). We sought to examine the association between self-reported enjoyment from the commute to work or study in an Australian inner city context, where different travel modes are readily available. Methods: As part of the Sydney Transport and Health Study 675 baseline study participants (aged 18-59, without disability and who had ever ridden a bicycle) were invited to complete an on-line questionnaire in September/October 2014, 12 months after baseline data collection (513 agreed, 76%). Respondents were asked about their usual travel mode to work, how much enjoyment they got from their commute to work or study (dichotomised to a moderate/great deal/extreme amount or none at all/small amount), physical activity over the previous week, plus demographic information. Walking and cycling were combined into an active travel variable. Logistic regression was used to investigate the association of active/non-active travel mode to work with self-reported enjoyment, adjusting for age, sex, education, minutes of physical activity and reporting feeling rushed or pressured. Results: The main mode of travel to work/study in this inner city area was public transport (41%), motor vehicle, (27%) walking (21%) and cycling (10%). Walkers (49%) and cyclists (51%) reported far higher levels of enjoyment from their commute than car drivers (14%) or public transport users (11%), with an adjusted odds ratio for active travel of 6.97 (95% confidence interval 4.37–11.10, P<0.01). Conclusions: Active travel to work/study was reported to be almost seven times more enjoyable than driving or using public transport. Creating more opportunities for active travel is likely to be well received by commuters.