Reducing the transport sector’s carbon emissions in a changing climate : to what extent do micro-incentives influence modal shift?

Type of content
Theses / Dissertations
Publisher's DOI/URI
Thesis discipline
Urban Resilience and Renewal
Degree name
Master of Urban Resilience and Renewal
Publisher
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Language
English
Date
2023
Authors
Sheppard, Pippa
Abstract

As global Carbon Dioxide (CO₂) emissions increase, sparking immense concern for the planet's sustainability, research is needed into the branches that contribute the most to emission outputs. The appropriate mitigation strategies can then be considered. The transport sector contributes roughly one fifth of global CO₂ emissions. The way in which this research will contribute to investigating how emissions can be reduced will be through analysing the extent to which micro-incentives can influence modal shift. This will be examined through three means: a literature review, semi-structured interviews, and data analysis of a Christchurch City Council survey. A literature review exploring the psychology of behaviour change, how the term micro-incentive can be defined, and analysing examples of transport incentives internationally. Following the literature review, interviews were conducted with businesses that have previously or currently offer employee transport incentives. What the interviews achieved was finding out what businesses had offered employees, what the uptake was like of the incentives, and how central Government agencies and Councils could support businesses wanting to provide their employees with transport incentives. To support the findings in the interviews analysis of Christchurch City Council (CCC) survey data was conducted. The data expressed the main deterrents people had that prevented them from using specific modes of transport. Key findings from the research concluded that the end of trip facilities was more important for employees. With the facilities being more important to individuals than a financial or non-financial reward, the facilities must be invested in so that they are of a high standard and quality for individuals. Overall, the research concluded that micro-incentives have an influence on modal shift; however, the extent that they are effective depends on the duration of time that the incentive is offered and the openness of the individual to commit to changing the way they travel.

Description
Citation
Keywords
Micro-incentives, Sustainable travel, Public Transport, Cycling, Community engagement
Ngā upoko tukutuku/Māori subject headings
ANZSRC fields of research
Rights
All Rights Reserved