Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Australian Commutersí Attitudes and Behaviour Concerning Abatement Policies and Personal Involvement

Abstract

Public interest in the environment is building as we gain information about the deterioration in air quality and the potential threat of global warming. This research addresses the dichotomy between an individual’s behavior and his or her attitudinal support for policies which are promoted as benefiting the environment. We study how responses to attitudinal survey questions are interrelated, and how such responses are related to actual travel behavior using data from a survey undertaken in six capital cities in Australia in 1994. A measurement model is used to establish a set of latent attitudinal factors, and these factors are related in a structural equations model to a set of behavioral variables representing commuterís mode choice and choice of compressed work schedules, conditioned by a set of exogenous variables. We find that individuals with a strong environmental commitment are more likely to be female, from smaller households with fewer cars, be either under 30 years old or over 50 years old, have high household income and be highly educated. However, women are likely to view the car as a status symbol, and this attitude is conducive to choice of solo driving. We also find that mode choice influences attitudes; commuters who use public transport are more likely to support policies aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Our conclusion is that switching commuters away from solo driving can have effects that transcend the benefit obtained from reduced vehicle use for the journey to work alone.