Attitudinal Variables Influencing Transit Ridership: Measuring the Impact of Express Bus Service in Kingston, Ontario

Abstract

This report explores transportation behaviour in a mid-sized Canadian city context during a major change in service. Scholars have analyzed the many factors that influence transit ridership amongst populations, including: built form variables; demographic characteristics; mode specific factors; trip characteristics; transportation demand management; and psychological factors. However, the degree to which these factors predict transit ridership is not clearly understood or agreed upon, particularly in mid-sized cities. This report discusses how these six categories of variables influenced transit ridership amongst staff commuting to Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario between 2013 and 2016. The findings of this research indicate that Queen’s University employees have gradually begun to adopt Kingston Transit as a primary means to commute to work, and attitudes towards transit similarly experience moderate change over time. Factors within four of the six variable categories were found to have significant influence towards predicting transit shifting amongst the subject population.