Transporting Dalhousie: An Analysis of Factors Influencing Students’ Transportation Choices to and from Dalhousie’s Studley Campus
Date
2017-04
Authors
Hodgins, Lauren
Foley, Niki
McGrath, James
Curren, Gillian
Labonte, Rachel
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Abstract
This study analyzed and identified factors influencing student transportation
choices to and from Dalhousie’s Studley Campus, addressing the knowledge gap in
student transportation behavior. Our aim was to understand specific needs and
influencing factors contributing to the state of sustainable behavior at Dalhousie. Our
survey received 175 responses, and included 13 close-ended multiple choice questions,
providing qualitative descriptive data. We discovered that the majority of respondents
live within 2 kilometers of campus, and acknowledge distance as the deciding factor in
their transportation choices. The majority of students walk to campus, contributing to
minimal or no influence of public transit access on decision making. The most significant
findings were a lack of awareness of transportation services offered by Dalhousie, such
as the Bike Centre, Halifax CarShare programs, and Dalhousie transportation
sustainability guidelines, with only 13.4% of respondents being confident in their
knowledge of these services. Additionally, we were surprised to discover more than half
of the respondents to this survey reported environmental impacts as having no or
minimal impact on their transportation choices. This study provides a solid base for
future, more specific Dalhousie transportation research, and we recommend the
administration use this information to move forward in better serving student
transportation needs.
Description
ENVS 3502 Environmental Problem Solving II: The Campus as a Living Laboratory Final Report