Browsing by Subject "Commuting"

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    Duke University's Alternative Transportation Future
    (2021-04-29) Gilman, James; Almes, Hardy
    Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Duke University’s emissions from commuting were increasing. To address this trend, Sustainable Duke has been looking to increase the use of alternative transportation by expanding usage of existing services that support these modes. This study examines the knowledge and barriers to use of alternative modes among graduate students. A survey was administered to assess these concerns. The study also examines the academic literature on alternative transportation and environmental psychology and compiles interview responses from peer universities. The study found students to be largely unaware of available alternative transportation options and services. Barriers relating to time, safety, and convenience were identified in both the survey and the existing literature. The data also suggest a strong preference for receiving information on transportation services via student-wide emails. These results will be used to develop informational materials designed to address barriers to alternative transportation use at Duke. Future work will be needed to judge the efficacy of and update these materials moving forward.
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    The Toll of Commuting: The Effects of Commute Time on Well-Being
    (2018-04-18) Marshall, M. Thomas Jr
    When deciding on housing location, people theoretically optimize for the best location given their commute time, housing cost, income, as well as other factors. Stutzer and Frey (2008) suggest that this is not true in some nations, such as in their investigation of Germany, with their results showing that the cost of an average commute is equivalent to 35.4% of the average income. This paper investigates the impact of commute time on the well-being of individuals in the United States, correcting for various other factors that determine housing choice such as race, age, and whether they have a child living at home. The results of this study are clearly that the relationship found between commuting time and well-being cannot be proven to be statistically significant from zero, so there is not any evidence against optimization.