THE OBJECTIVE VERSUS THE PERCEIVED ENVIRONMENT: WHAT MATTERS FOR CYCLING AS A TRANSPORT SOLUTION

Abstract

Large bicycle infrastructure investments aimed at transforming Singapore into a car-lite society can nudge Singaporeans in the right direction. However, there is still an existing challenge for urban and transport planners trying to achieve monumental change. The research seeks to examine the relationship between the objective (actual) environment and subjective (perception) of the environment. It is the first research to consider their relative effects on utilitarian behaviour with regards to probability and frequency of cycling in Singapore. The study will also consider the significance of factors like socio-demographics, travel attitudes and level of social support on cycling behaviour.

Empirical results from the binary logit model showed that the probability of cycling is impacted by both objective and subjective factors of the built environment with subjective factors having a slightly stronger significance than the objective. In addition, travel attitude is identified as a significant factor. Through multivariate linear regression, it was found that frequency of cycling is determined more strongly by perceptions of the built environment and the level of social support felt. It was also identified that socio-demographics have a significant impact in the propensity and frequency of individuals choosing cycling as a transport mode.

Given these findings, interventions targeted at improving people’s perceptions, attitude, as well as Singapore’s cycling culture should be a complement to the existing policies focusing on the physical design of the built environment. This will allow the Land Transport Authority to achieve more significant results with their efforts to transform Singapore into a cycling nation.