Getting the timing right: using 'moments of change' to promote sustainable travel behaviour

应对气候变化需要深刻的行为改变，包括在交通方面。事实上，减少汽车使用是个人能够做出的最有效的缓解行为改变之一。然而，出行行为是最难改变的。这在一定程度上是因为它们是强烈的习惯性--无意识的例行公事，由语境提示触发(例如，现在是早上8点，是开车去上班的时候了)，而不是有意识地考虑替代方案的产物(例如，今天哪种交通方式是最好的？)。但由于习惯受到稳定环境的影响，环境的变化会破坏习惯的稳定。与此一致的是，研究表明，干扰--无论是关于一个人的人生历程(例如，搬回家)还是物理或社会背景(例如，基础设施中断)--提供了在新方向重塑行为的机会。因此，针对变革时刻的干预措施比其他时候更有效。虽然许多研究探索了传记生活中的这些“机会之窗”，比如搬回家、退休或为人父母，但对于更广泛的社会混乱(例如，城市环境的变化)如何引发积极的行为改变，人们了解得很少。因此，这项博士研究将探索有形基础设施中断(例如，道路封闭、宜居社区)可能对模式转换和出行需求产生的影响。此外，该项目将评估在这种中断期间实施的促进积极旅行和公共交通的干预措施(例如，财政奖励措施)的有效性。与包括威尔士交通局和北萨默塞特郡议会在内的多个行业合作伙伴合作，将进行一系列三项研究，评估旅行基础设施中断对旅行行为和需求的影响。第一项研究将调查道路使用者如何应对不同类型的道路中断(例如，不同规模的道路中断)，目的是测量事件必须具有多大的破坏性才能引发态度或行为变化的临界点。为此，将进行混合方法调查，要求道路使用者报告他们将如何调整自己的出行行为，以适应不同的干扰情景。第二个实证研究将通过几个案例研究来评估和比较现实生活中的道路使用者对道路中断的反应行为。为此，混合方法调查将监测道路使用者的心理(例如，习惯、态度、价值观)、结构(例如，有形基础设施的体验)和社会人口因素如何影响他们对道路中断的反应。第一项和第二项研究的参与者将通过付费招聘平台(例如，多产)和社交媒体平台以及行业合作伙伴的客户小组进行招募。行业合作伙伴收集的匿名旅行数据也将被用作行为变化的客观衡量标准。最后，第三项研究将旨在捕捉交通规划者和提供商的观点，即如何看待和准备基础设施中断，以及是否和如何促进积极的行为变化。为此，将对主要伙伴组织内参与旅行规划/决策的人员进行几次半结构化面谈。这些人将包括已经参与该项目的伙伴代表，并将通过口碑招募更多的参与者。

Addressing climate change requires profound behavioural changes, including within transport. Indeed, reducing car use is one of the most impactful mitigation behaviour changes that individuals can make. Yet, travel behaviours are amongst the most difficult to change. This is partly because they are strongly habitual - unconscious routines triggered by contextual cues (e.g., 'it's 8am, time to drive to work') rather than the product of conscious deliberation of alternatives (e.g., 'which mode of transport would be best today?'). But since habits are cued by stable contexts, changes in context destabilise habits. Consistent with this, research shows that disruptions - whether concerning a person's life-course (e.g. moving home) or physical or social context (e.g. infrastructure disruption) - provide opportunities to reshape behaviours in new directions. Interventions targeted to moments of change are thus more effective than at other times. While much research has explored these 'windows of opportunity' during biographical life events, such as moving home, retiring, or becoming a parent, less is understood about how wider societal disruptions (e.g., changes to urban environments) might provoke positive behaviour change. This PhD research will thus explore the impact that physical infrastructure disruptions (e.g., road closures, liveable neighbourhoods) might have on modal shift and travel demand. Further, the project will evaluate the effectiveness of interventions (e.g., financial incentives) promoting active travel and public transport that are implemented during such disruptions. Working with a variety of industrial partners, including Transport for Wales and North Somerset Council, a series of three studies will be conducted which evaluate the impact of travel infrastructure disruptions on travel behaviour and demand. The first study will investigate how road users respond to different types of road disruptions (e.g., varying in scale) with the aim of gauging the tipping points for how disruptive an event must be to provoke attitudinal or behaviour change. To do this, mixed methods surveys will be conducted asking road users to report how they would adapt their travel behaviour to different disruptive scenarios. The second empirical study will involve evaluating and comparing real-life road user behaviour in response to road disruptions across several case studies. To do this, mixed methods surveys will monitor how road users' psychological (e.g., habits, attitudes, values), structural (e.g., experience of physical infrastructure), and sociodemographic factors influence their responses to road disruptions. Participants for both the first and second study will be recruited through a combination of paid recruitment platforms (e.g., Prolific) and social media platforms and customer panels of the industrial partners. Anonymous travel data collected by the industrial partners will also be used as objective measures of behaviour change.Finally, a third study will aim to capture the perspective of transport planners and providers on how infrastructure disruptions are viewed and prepared for, and if and how positive behaviour change is promoted. To do this, several semi-structured interviews will be conducted with those involved in travel planning/decision-making within the key partner organisations. These will include the partner representatives already involved in the project and further participants will be recruited through word-of-mouth.