QUALITY ATTIBUTES OF A JOURNEY: THEIR IDENTIFICATION AND IMPACT ON TRAVELLERS

This report presents an investigation of how travellers perceive and evaluate factors contributing to the quality of their journeys. The research was based on a re-examination of several qualitative data sets, typically tape-recorded interviews and transcripts, where travellers talked about their journeys. The interview records were used to: (1) identify as many as possible of the quality attributes perceived by travellers using different modes, and find evidence for sources of variation; (2) obtain insights into how travellers value, weigh, or trade these attributes against each other and against time and money travel costs. The report gives details of: (1) core factors; (2) logistical factors influencing choices; (3) the travel environment; (4) travellers' attitudes and motives; (5) personal influencing factors; (6) trade-offs and mode-switches. The authors conclude that: (1) quality variables play a significant part in travellers' choices; (2) a few strong core factors could reduce the number of degrees of freedom in a planned trip; (3) different concerns were important for users of different modes; (4) assessments of quality variables are subjective and contradictory. The implications of these findings are considered for: (1) incorporating quality factors in travel demand models; and (2) possible new research projects.