Sustainable mobility at a university campus: walking preferences and the use of electric minibus

The most useful strategies to reduce traffic congestion and the consequences on the environment are linked to the improvement of the use of sustainable transport systems such as electric transit systems and of the pedestrian mobility. This study has the aim to investigate on the factors influencing the preferences of the users just between these two alternative modes: walking and moving by a transit system. We propose a study of the mobility inside a university campus sited in a wide suburban area. The main structures of the campus are located along a steel bridge 1.5 kilometres long. The mobility on the bridge is mainly a pedestrian mobility, but there is also a service offered by an electric minibus. Specifically, discrete choice models are proposed to establish the characteristics of the alternative modes and the attitudes of users mostly affecting their preferences. The models are based on the use of experimental data collected by a sample survey. Interesting results are obtained, suggesting that personal attitudes of the users and service quality aspects influence their preferences of moving.