Understanding the Substitution of Commuting Trip Chains for Other Home-Based Trips and Factors’ Effects on Commuting Trip Chaining Propensity—Using Shanghai Mobile Phone Sighting Data

Abstract

Some commuters are assumed to include multiple activities in their commutes, e.g. having breakfast, sending children to school or purchasing life necessities, to reduce their costs of travelling. This research attempts to answer two questions: (1) whether the substitution of commuting trip chains for other home-based trips exists; and (2) how the factors effect on the commuting trip chaining propensity. However, trip chaining behaviors would be difficult to empirically study due to the reluctance of respondents to fully report their detailed activity information in traditional travel surveys, especially when the activities are combined in other trips, e.g. commutes. Fortunately, mobile phone sighting data offers an innovative prospect to understand the human activity pattern by fully tracking mobile phone users’ temporal and spatial traces. The study will firstly configure commuters, commuting trajectories and activity sightings from a Shanghai mobile phone sighting dataset; and with the land use, transportation and some socioeconomic data of Shanghai, a panel sample will be derived. Based on this sample, the research will develop two binary response models to find out answers. The main findings are: (1) the substitution of commuting trip chains on other home-based trips is significant; (2) long-distance commuters are more likely to chain their commutes; (3) activity conducting decisions during commuting tend to be based on the built environment near commuters’ workplaces and hardly react to the changes of their residential areas; and (4) the abundance of transport and path choices along commuting corridors improves the possibility of commuting trip chaining. Thus, it can be suggested that some living service facilities should also be distributed along commuting corridors besides near residential areas in public facility planning. And the allocation level of public facility along typical long-distance commuting paths and near main employment centers should be improved.