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Walkability Policies in Developing Countries: What Do People Need and Prefer in Iran?

Author

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  • Ali Qazimirsaeed

    (Department of Urban Planning, Faculty of Art and Architecture, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran 141171311, Iran)

  • Hanie Khosravi

    (Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Tehran, Tehran 3391653755, Iran)

  • Mojtaba Rafieian

    (Department of Urban Planning, Faculty of Art and Architecture, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran 141171311, Iran)

  • Hamid Mirzahossein

    (Civil-Transportation Planning, Imam Khomeini International University, Qazvin 3414916818, Iran)

  • Carmen Forciniti

    (Department of Civil Engineering, University of Calabria, 87036 Rende, CS, Italy)

Abstract

Examining the willingness to pay (WTP) in the implementation of walkability policies can indicate the needs and preferences of individuals. Consequently, better defined individual preferences lead to successful sustainable transportation plans. While there is an extensive literature discussing WTP in sustainable transportation, they mostly focus on developed countries, and this issue has not been adequately studied for developing countries, especially the Middle East. This study aims to determine the preferences of transportation users in developing countries and their willingness in paying to implement sustainable transportation policies. To this aim, 384 surveys were conducted in Karaj city, Iran, using the contingent valuation method (CVM). The WTP and its contextual criteria (household’s cost, demography, and economic class) and walkability criteria (safety, accessibility, network design, and social) were examined using PLS-SEM with 1000 resamples through the SEMinR package in the R programming language. The results show that 46% of participants were willing to pay extra taxes to implement the walkability policies. Furthermore, the structural model indicates that safety, social, spatial, and accessibility are the most important factors, respectively, and predict WTP in a positive direction. In contrast, gender and cost predict WTP in a negative direction.

Suggested Citation

  • Ali Qazimirsaeed & Hanie Khosravi & Mojtaba Rafieian & Hamid Mirzahossein & Carmen Forciniti, 2022. "Walkability Policies in Developing Countries: What Do People Need and Prefer in Iran?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-17, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:17:p:10808-:d:902358
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    References listed on IDEAS

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