IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/transa/v181y2024ics0965856424000193.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

A barrier to the promotion of app-based ridesplitting: Travelers’ ambiguity aversion in mode choice

Author

Listed:
  • Zhang, Xin
  • Zhong, Shiquan
  • Jia, Ning
  • Ling, Shuai
  • Yao, Wang
  • Ma, Shoufeng

Abstract

Ridesplitting, despite having been around for years, accounts for a low proportion of overall transportation modes. With the development of technology, app-based ridesplitting is witnessing new opportunities but its usage rate still remains poor. Intuitively, travelers’ aversion to the unreliable travel time inherent of ridesplitting may stop them from choosing it. Many studies have explored the role of risk aversion, but fewer focus on ambiguity aversion. In this study, we aim to understand travelers’ preferences for information ambiguity in shaping their choice behavior of using app-based ridesplitting. Therefore, we built up choice models of this thought to describe travelers’ behaviors in ridesplitting. Based on the models, a two-stage framework was established including field data research and experimental research testing the existence of ambiguity aversion. In the first stage, a data set containing detailed information on nearly 2.2 million trips in Chengdu, China was utilized. By the maximum likelihood method, the fitting level of unreliability model is better and the coefficient of ambiguity attitude shows the existence of ambiguity aversion. In the second stage, a stated choice experiment was designed with a variety of choice tasks to reproduce real-life scenarios. Significantly fewer ridesplitting cases happen in the ambiguous information treatment than in the certain information treatment, but risky information does not reduce the number of choosing ridesplitting significantly. The results undergo cross-validation with field research data to ensure their reliability. This study leverages travelers’ aversion to ambiguity to explain their reluctance towards ridesplitting. The findings have strong implications for relevant service platforms to prompt more travelers towards participating in ridesplitting, for example enhancing the provision of travel information to address the concerns of potential users.

Suggested Citation

  • Zhang, Xin & Zhong, Shiquan & Jia, Ning & Ling, Shuai & Yao, Wang & Ma, Shoufeng, 2024. "A barrier to the promotion of app-based ridesplitting: Travelers’ ambiguity aversion in mode choice," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 181(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:transa:v:181:y:2024:i:c:s0965856424000193
    DOI: 10.1016/j.tra.2024.103971
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0965856424000193
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.tra.2024.103971?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:transa:v:181:y:2024:i:c:s0965856424000193. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/547/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.