New study provides further evidence that when it comes to travel, what people think is less important than their environment www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... This nicely agrees with the Reverse Causality Hypothesis (www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...) which says attitudes FOLLOW behaviour - ThreadSky

ianwalker.bsky.social • 121 days ago

New study provides further evidence that when it comes to travel, what people think is less important than their environment https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1361920924005133 This nicely agrees with the Reverse Causality Hypothesis (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0966692318308913?casa_token=NLAKsFhqQMkAAAAA:nLBpfb_akdnUuxkpHFscwr03ymLlf_i6ASddsmyDqGC-wmAKXdHhUT9h35k4FaozsT4de8ah5g) which says attitudes FOLLOW behaviour

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hanneydp.bsky.social•121 days ago

I always think of the Dutch people who cycled everyday but then moved to say Britain and stopped using a bike. And also then the people going the opposite direction who do the opposite. It’s all driven by the built environment and art of the possible, not life outlook.

peterclinch.bsky.social•121 days ago

Broadly, yes, though life outlook will determine the degree of environmental hostility at which one gives up trying.
There are Dutch folk in NL who still drive everywhere, there are Dutch folk in the UK who still cycle everywhere, so it's a function of both but with environment the main factor.

hanneydp.bsky.social•121 days ago

I’d love to see a study that goes step further to above and do a travel diary of Dutch people who cycle a lot in NL and then how their travel behaviour changes when for whatever reason they move to another country. Same person same background, yet two different outcomes based on location.

paultbg.bsky.social•121 days ago

When I lived in Brussels (in 1990s) I met a number of Dutch people who moved to that city & assumed they'd just carry on cycling, so ingrained was their use of the bike, but who eventually gave up cycling because of its unpleasantness in the city.

ericeatspickles.bsky.social•121 days ago

As David Hembrow explains in his blog, utility cycling - even in the Netherlands - is fragile & can be dealt enormous harm & set back with a few wrong-headed initiatives. Without sustained investment & safe space, it breaks down.
https://www.aviewfromthecyclepath.com/2014/06/the-myth-of-tipping-point-and-fragility.html

madman2.bsky.social•121 days ago

See @annaholligan.bsky.social for more examples.

yunod.sustainabletranslator.scot•121 days ago

This happened to me when I moved back from the Netherlands!

angelone.bsky.social•121 days ago

A Brookings analysis of travel patterns in a 110 U.S. metros found that households that live in convenient locations to activity centers travel fewer total miles. This doesn’t focus on mode-split but supports these findings.

gutmann.bsky.social•121 days ago

📌

jonburkeuk.bsky.social•121 days ago

I would go further and say structure begets behaviour which begets attitudes.

ianwalker.bsky.social•121 days ago

Yes, that's exactly what the reverse causality hypothesis predicts. I couldn't cram any more detail into that last tweet!

jonburkeuk.bsky.social•121 days ago

Which is why ‘behaviour change’ programmes - especially in relation to cost externalisation behaviour - that focus on ‘encouraging people’ are almost always a waste of time and money; though, of course, they do serve the purpose of being seen to be doing something…

ianwalker.bsky.social•121 days ago

Absolutely agree. I've given several presentations saying exactly this over the past few years (including a big one at DESNZ last month)

If anyone ever wants, I've got a great evidence-based talk I can do on this at a drop of a hat

gethin76.bsky.social•121 days ago

I started managing a behaviour change programme in Newport 18 months ago. Quickly came to the realisation it was utterly futile without being combined with meaningful changes to the surrounding infra

Start them in conjunction with infra improvements & you’ve got a chance. On their own not so much

ianwalker.bsky.social•121 days ago

100% this. Indeed, I think we can go further and argue that continuing to attempt the traditional behaviour change approach today is playing into the hands of people who don't want to change the status quo

magnatom.bsky.social•121 days ago

Is there any video of you giving this talk? This would be very useful to share with policy makers.

ianwalker.bsky.social•121 days ago

There might well be some. I gave a (slightly more specialised) version just this week that was videoed (will ask for the link)

rob042.bsky.social•120 days ago

Are there good/studied examples of behaviour change programs sweeping in behind new infrastructure to effect meaningful change for maximum effect?

rob042.bsky.social•120 days ago

These (reinforced) findings tell me that every new bit of walking and cycling infra should be immediately followed up with a program that shouts "this is a change! - we'll help you use it", b/c each new piece of infra may only be felt as a few extra mins on a journey, or slightly quieter route

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