Participation index: a measure to identify rural transport disadvantage?

This paper develops a composite participation index (PI) to identify patterns of transport disadvantage in space and time. It is operationalised using 157 weekly activity–travel diaries data collected from three case study areas in rural Northern Ireland. A review of activity space and travel behaviour research found that six dimensional indicators of activity spaces were typically used including the number of unique locations visited, distance travelled, area of activity spaces, frequency of activity participation, types of activity participated in, and duration of participation in order to identify transport disadvantage. A combined measure using six individual indices were developed based on the six dimensional indicators of activity spaces, by taking into account the relativity of the measures for weekdays, weekends, and for a week. Factor analyses were conducted to derive weights of these indices to form the PI measure. Multivariate analysis using general linear models of the different indicators/indices identified new patterns of transport disadvantage. The research found that: indicator based measures and index based measures are complement each other; interactions between different factors generated new patterns of transport disadvantage; and that these patterns vary in space and time. The analysis also indicates that the transport needs of different disadvantaged groups are varied.

Research highlights
► Measures of accessibility based on of the activity space concept are more suitable in identifying transport disadvantage in space and time than zonal based measures.
► Aggregation of multi-dimensional indicators of activity spaces into a participation index identified new patterns of transport disadvantage.
► Rural transport disadvantaged groups include non-car, non-working, low-income females, females living in rented households, and older individuals in certain areas.
► Data has shown that rural transport disadvantage and individual needs are dynamic.
► A higher level of area accessibility enhances participation in activities.