Explaining walking distance to public transport: The dominance of public transport supply

Abstract

Potential influences on explaining walking distance from home to access public transport are investigated, including trip and demographic characteristics and public transport supply. In Sydney, Australia, people walk farther to the train than to the bus, the distributions of walking distances are different for each mode, and the trip and demographic characteristics of train and bus users are different. Given the decision to walk to public transport, demographic characteristics such as age, gender, income, and labor force status and trip characteristics such as trip purpose, time of day and week, fare and ticket type, and trip duration are not significant in explaining walking distance to each mode of public transport. The mode of the public transport trip is the most important determinant of walking distance, reflecting the different supply and spacing of each mode. For instance, there are many more bus stops than train stations. The differences between train and bus users suggest that accessibility initiatives for public transport might not be the same for each mode.