Multimodal trips, quality of life and wellbeing: An exploratory analysis. (March 2022) - Cobbold, Alec
Abstract: Background: While multimodal travel is generally associated with greater transport system efficiency and lower traveller satisfaction, less is known about its impact on individual travellers' general health and wellbeing. Methods: An online questionnaire linked to a seven-day travel diary provided demographic, health and detailed trip taking behaviour, across three waves between September 2013 and November 2015 in Sydney, Australia. 532 participants provided 23, 776 trips for analysis. Mixed effects logistic regression, clustered by participant ID as a random effect and adjusted for wave as a fixed effect, was used to examine health characteristics of multimodal travellers, and to test associations between taking different modal combinations and an individual's reporting of sufficient physical activity (PA) and quality of life (QoL). Results: Most of the 5, 494 trips identified as multimodal involved public transport (PT) with active travel (AT) for access or egress. Individuals taking unimodal AT trips reported better QoL (AOR 1.25, p < 0.001) and increased likelihood to report sufficient PA for health (AOR 1.17, p = 0.046), while individuals taking multimodal PT + AT trips reported better QoL (AOR 1.26, p = 0.005), compared with those taking unimodal private motor trips. Conclusion: While modal interchange is often cited as having a negative impact on traveller satisfaction, our findings suggest there are no discernible impacts on QoL. On the contrary, multimodal trips may be associated with positive QoL outcomes in the case of public transport and active travel combinations. This finding supports the potential of integrated public transport and active travel modes as a sustainable alternative to the car, contributing to overall health and wellbeing. Highlights: Multimodal transport offers flexibility but little is known about the potential impact on health and wellbeing. The complexity of multimodal trip chains tends to be concealed by a research focus on 'main modes'. The propensity to take multimodal trips was positively associated with household income and use of active travel. Multimodal trips were negatively associated with an individual's general health satisfaction. There was no evidence that multimodal trips effected quality of life.