Dimensions in Elderly Mobility Behaviour as a Basis for Target Group Specific Mobility Services

1. Dimensions in Elderly Mobility Behaviour as a Basis for Target Group Specific Mobility Services Sonja Haustein ILS – Institut für Landes- und Stadtentwicklungsforschung GmbH Ruhr-Universität Bochum (RUB) Marcel Hunecke RUB, Germany Herbert Kemming ILS, Germany

2. Outline • Background • Segmentation approach • Description of the segments of the elderly • Target group specific measures • Conclusions

3. Background • populations of western world are aging • by 2030 almost every third European will be 60 years or older (United Nations, 2007) • affects almost every aspect of our lives incl. transport sector • today mobility rates and car use of the elderly are smaller than the ones of younger individuals but • mobility rates and private car use of older people expected to increase due to lifestyle changes and growing car availability • decreasing number of captive riders of public transport • negative environmental and safety implications e.g. Rosenbloom (2001). Sustainability and automobility among the elderly: an international assessment. Transportation, 28(4), 375-408.

4. Consequences • measures required that offer more environmentally-friendly alternatives to the private car, still meeting mobility and accessibility needs • mobility needs and requirements of the elderly have been research in the last years (e.g. EU projects MOBILATE, SIZE) but • most results refer to the whole group of the elderly however • seniors are a heterogeneous group with differentiating life styles, needs and requirements1 • need for a more differentiated approach 1BASt & DVR (2000). More road safety for senior citizens. European Conference, 2-4 May, 2000, Cologne. Bremerhaven: Wirtschaftsverlag NW.

5. Segmentation approaches of the elderly

6. Evaluation of different approaches • different kind of segmentation approaches have specific pros and cons and are relevant for different fields of application1 • not applied for the group of seniors until now: segmentation approach that regards mobility-related attitudes • advantages1: • higher relation to mobility behaviour than life styles and socio-demographic types • offer better starting points for interventions than behaviour based and socio-demographic approaches 1Hunecke, Haustein, Böhler, & Grischkat (in press). An attitude based target group approach to reduce the ecological impact of daily mobility behavior. Environment & Behavior.

7. Data base1 • standardised interviews • 557 individuals (51% m., 49% f.) • aged 60-80 • three district types in three big German cities: city-centre, city border, suburban district • face-to-face interviews (~one hour) • content • mobility behaviour to explain mobility behaviour: • mobility-related attitudes, norms • socio-demographic data • infrastructural data 1Sub-sample of data form research project MOBILANZ supported by Federal Ministry of Education and Research (cf. Hunecke, Haustein, Grischkat, & Böhler, Journal of Environmental Psychology, 27, 277-292.

8. Segmentation process 1. step:factoranalysis to develop reliable scales 2. step:regression analyses to identify the most important determinants of mobility behaviour of the elderly 3. step:cluster analyses to identify segments of elderly based on the most relevant determinants of mobility behaviour

9. First step: Development of reliable scales Psychological scales 1Conbach’s α

10. Second step: Identification of relevant determinants of mobility behaviour Regression analyses (2 out of 5)

11. Regression analyses (2 out of 5) Second step: Identification of relevant determinants of mobility behaviour 11 / 19

12. Third step: Identification of segments of the elderly Cluster centres

13. Segments‘ distribution

14. Modal Split

15. Distance travelled and leisure time activities

16. Overview of segments‘ characteristics

17. Target group specific measures

18. Conclusions • Mobility management for the elderly has to recognise the heterogeneous requirements and attitudes of this group. • The presented approach defines relevant subgroups, which can serve as target groups for specific measures. • Segments’ mobility behaviour cannot be explained by socio-demographic and infrastructural differences alone but also requires the consideration of mobility-related attitudes. • Car availability is not necessarily required for a high amount of leisure time mobility if access to PT is available: • three segments with the highest amount of leisure time activities show above average shares of eco-friendly modes (foot, bike, or public transport); none of them uses the car above-average • good public transport service can help to enhance mobility of older people and contribute to a high quality of life

19. Thanks for your attention! Sonja Haustein ILS – Institut für Landes- und Stadtentwicklungsforschung GmbH sonja.haustein@ils.nrw.de http://www.ils.nrw.de/ Ruhr-Universität Bochum Workgroup for Environmental and Cognitive Psychology sonja.haustein@rub.de http://eco.psy.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/