An Application of Attitudinal Structural Equation Modeling to Intercity Transportation Market Segmentation

Travel behavior information is valuable to transportation policymakers, planners, and service providers. While aggregate data is helpful, segmenting a market into smaller groups allows for more targeted planning, promotion, operation, and evaluation. In this study, intercity market segments based on traveler attitudes are identified using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The study focuses on rural and small urban areas, using survey data for residents of North Dakota and northwest Minnesota. Attitudes toward travel time, flexibility, and privacy are found to have the strongest explanatory power. The socioeconomic profile of each market segment is identified. Individuals living in the study’s upper Midwest market area are assigned to market segments based on their socioeconomic characteristics to determine market segment size. Mode shares for automobile, air, intercity bus, intercity rail, and van service are estimated for each market segment under varying conditions.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • This paper was sponsored by TRB committee AR010 Intercity Passenger Rail
• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001
• Authors:
  • Ripplinger, David
  • Mattson, Jeremy
  • Peterson, Del
• Conference:
  • Transportation Research Board 91st Annual Meeting
  • Location: Washington DC, United States
  • Date: 2012-1-22 to 2012-1-26
• Date: 2012

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 17p
• Monograph Title: TRB 91st Annual Meeting Compendium of Papers DVD

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Air travel; Attitudes; Automobile travel; Bus transportation; Demographics; Intercity transportation; Intercity travel; Market segmented groups; Modal split; Mode choice; Rural areas; Small towns; Socioeconomic factors; Structural equation modeling; Travel behavior
• Uncontrolled Terms: Intercity passenger rail
• Geographic Terms: Minnesota; North Dakota
• Subject Areas: Aviation; Passenger Transportation; Planning and Forecasting; Public Transportation; Railroads; I72: Traffic and Transport Planning;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01373442
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 12-0957
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Jun 22 2012 1:13PM