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Service quality in public transport is proposed as a key determinant of perceived accessibility, the ease to live the life one wants with the help of the transport system, as low service quality may be a barrier for use, decreasing the ease to participate in daily activities. The first aim was to validate the direct relationship between public transport quality and perceived accessibility. Secondly, we analyzed the mediating role of safety perceptions to better explain the link between service quality and perceived accessibility. Public transport travelers (n = 4944) from five northern European cities were surveyed. Results from PLS-SEM modeling show that service quality has a significant and direct relationship with perceived accessibility, especially regarding functionality. An indirect relationship through travel safety perceptions was also observed, highlighting information and comfort as main drivers. High car use, low public transport use, increasing age, and being a woman were also associated with greater perceived accessibility. City comparisons yielded a number of significant differences. Our results contribute to the research literature by highlighting the importance of service quality in public transport for perceptions of accessibility in daily travel. In particular, we argue that functionality is the core attribute to focus on, and that attributes related to travel safety perceptions should be carefully considered when planning for sustainable transport.

Accessibility is commonly assessed using indicators calculated from spatial data. Comparatively perceived accessibility cannot be adequately reflected by these calculated measures because it involves the perception to participate in spatially dispersed opportunities. This highlights the need to understand and consider perceived accessibility for planning and evaluation of transport systems from a complementary perspective. Therefore, this study aims to offer a systematic review concerning the interpretations of perceived accessibility in transport, its concept, major social drivers, barriers, evaluation methods and key influencing factors. This review also highlights the importance of perceived safety and service quality in public transport and their relationship with perceived accessibility in daily travel. The paper argues that perceived accessibility with due consideration of perceived safety and service quality will contribute to the development from mobility-based to accessibility-based planning.

People are living longer than they did previously, and the proportion of older people is increasing worldwide. This rapid development will have implications for the transport system, in general, and for travel behavior and accessibility to daily activities, in particular. In recent years, both research and politics have drawn the attention of the public to issues affecting the opportunities of the elderly to participate in everyday life. The debate has so far mostly focused on health issues, with limited work having been done on the ability of the elderly to live the lives they want to considering how they travel. With this view, a theoretical model, grounded in a model of travel and subjective wellbeing was developed to explore the role of perceived accessibility in satisfaction with travel and life satisfaction. Empirical data were collected from a sample of 2422 respondents (aged 60–92) from five cities in Northern Europe (Stockholm, Helsinki, Oslo, Copenhagen, Bergen) and analyzed using partial least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The findings confirmed the link between perceived accessibility, travel satisfaction, and life satisfaction. The findings also showed the role of sociodemographic and travel attributes in perceived accessibility and satisfaction with travel, as well as the moderating effects of different age groups. We conclude that this moderating role played by age indicates that we should not always treat the elderly as a homogenous group in research and transport planning.

Perceived accessibility has been acknowledged as an important aspect of transport policy since the 70s. Nevertheless, very few empirical studies have been conducted in this field. When aiming to improve social inclusion, by making sustainable transport modes accessible to all, it is important to understand the factors driving perceived accessibility. Unlike conventional accessibility measures, perceived accessibility focuses on the perceived possibilities and ease of engaging in preferred activities using different transport modes. We define perceived accessibility in terms of how easy it is to live a satisfactory life with the help of the transport system, which is not necessarily the same thing as the objective standard of the system. According to previous research, perceived accessibility varies with the subjectively-rated quality of the mode of transport. Thus, improvements in quality (e.g. trip planning, comfort, or safety) increase the perceived accessibility and make life easier to live using the chosen mode of transport. This study (n=750) focuses on the perceived accessibility of public transport, captured using the Perceived Accessibility Scale PAC (Lättman, Olsson, & Friman, 2015). More specifically, this study aims to determine how level of quality affects the perceived accessibility in public transport. A Conditional Process Model shows that, in addition to quality, feeling safe and frequency of travel are important predictors of perceived accessibility. Furthermore, elderly and those in their thirties report a lower level of perceived accessibility to their day-to-day activities using public transport. The basic premise of this study is that subjective experiences may be as important as objective indicators when planning and designing for socially inclusive transport systems.

Accessibility is commonly defined and operationalised through objective measurements, such as travel time and physical distance to destinations; however, there is a lack of empirical studies capturing perceived accessibility from individual perspectives. With the aim of sustainable transport for inclusive communities, it is crucial to investigate the impact of socio-economy and travel mode on perceived accessibility and key driving factors of perceived safety and service quality. Through the collection of primary data from one of the fastest-growing suburbs in Melbourne, this study examined variation of perceptions towards accessibility, safety, and service quality among diverse social groups and travellers using different modes of transport. The findings of this study would assist transport planners in making informed decisions in creating inclusive transport networks that can improve community health and well-being.

In order to constitute a realistic option to existing travel modes, carpooling needs to be able to offer adequate levels of accessibility. Insights into how carpooling services affect perceived accessibility up until now remain unexplored. In this study we explore carpooling experiences of 122 users in Sweden and examine a number of possible determinants of the perceived accessibility of carpooling. Results show that carpooling is not perceived by the users as particularly accessible with low levels across the sample. Moreover, multiple linear hierarchical regression analyses show that simplicity of travel, population density, years of education, and school and work-trips appear to affect perceptions of accessibility of carpooling, whereas travel time and cost appear not to. The final model explains a third of the variance in perceived accessibility of carpooling, thus nearly two thirds of the variation is still unaccounted for. Future research should explore further possible determinants of perceived accessibility of carpooling in order to explain, understand, and counteract the low levels of accessibility that appear to be linked to this specific travel mode.

The ability to live the life one wants with public transport is one of the key factors of sustainable and inclusive societies. Given the current trend in the transport domain, providing accessible public transport is necessary in order to allow people to participate in their day-to-day activities without using a car. Using survey data obtained from Sweden, this study investigates factors that may have a negative effect on the perceived accessibility of public transportation in major city areas and other areas. Overall, regression analyses show that time and economic resources, organizational and temporal functions, frequent travel by public transport, and geographical context all act as accessibility barriers. These findings highlight the need not only to target increased mobility in urban environments, but also to turn the focus to the citizenry’s perceived accessibility. These findings point to implications for policies, planning and interventions targeted at accessible public transport. Adopting an accessibility-oriented approach to urban development, including the individual perspective, could be a pathway for creating a socially sustainable transport system.

In recent years, accessibility to services and activities using sustainable transport modes has become an important goal for land use and transport planning policies. Traditional approaches rely on objective measures, such as travel time, distance, costs, and other spatial data, overlooking personal preferences, experiences, demographic features, and socio-cultural and economic dynamics. Attributes that affect perceptions of accessibility require attention but our understanding of the factors influencing perceived accessibility is inadequate, particularly in Australia’s expanding suburbs. Through a literature review and questionnaire surveys, this study aims to take into account various travel characteristics and enhance the understanding of how perceived safety and service quality impact mobility behaviour and perceived accessibility within the Australian context. The study found that perceived safety and service quality have significant impacts on perceived accessibility and hence influence the use of public transport. We have identified critical factors that require proper consideration in transport and land use planning and policies to enable a better contribution from public transport to the liveability and well-being of residents in Australian suburbs.

A sustainable development of urban transportation relies on our ability to offer citizens reliant and attractive alternatives to car travel, such as efficient and appealing public transport (PT) services, alongside an urban environment that is stimulating for active travel alternatives, such as walking and cycling [...]

In recent years, accessibility to services and activities using sustainable transport modes has become an important goal for land use and transport planning policies. Traditional approaches rely on objective measures, such as travel time, distance, costs, and other spatial data, overlooking personal preferences, experiences, demographic features, and socio-cultural and economic dynamics. Attributes that affect perceptions of accessibility require attention but our understanding of the factors influencing perceived accessibility is inadequate, particularly in Australia’s expanding suburbs. Through a literature review and questionnaire surveys, this study aims to take into account various travel characteristics and enhance the understanding of how perceived safety and service quality impact mobility behaviour and perceived accessibility within the Australian context. The study found that perceived safety and service quality have significant impacts on perceived accessibility and hence influence the use of public transport. We have identified critical factors that require proper consideration in transport and land use planning and policies to enable a better contribution from public transport to the liveability and well-being of residents in Australian suburbs.