The thesis aims to explore attitudes and the perceived image of cycling in Mexico City and the extent to which this may be a deterrent for engaging in cycle commuting. It also explores the existence of attitudinal transport segments.
Transport segments were investigated using a questionnaire developed by the Segment Project EU. Data about attitudes were collected in the same survey from a theory-based questionnaire developed from the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), extended with constructs from the Social Comparison Theory (SCT) and the Material Possessions Model (MPM). The survey was distributed on-street and online, with a simple random sample of 401 road users. The sample characteristics were: no cyclists or infrequent cyclists, living and working in Mexico City, and aged 18-60.
The results indicate that the same attitudinal transport segments identified in Europe also exist in Mexico City. They also show that cycling attributes, attitudes to cycling, social comparison, and social image and prestige were the most important factors influencing intention to cycle, explaining 42% of the variance in intention to cycle. Notably, when the evaluation of cycling was negative, the intention to commute by cycling was weaker; when the attributes of cycling and the social image linked to cycling were positive, the intention to cycle commute was strengthened. The effect of social comparison is not clearly established.
Although the results from this study are specific to Mexico City, they indicate areas of interest to transportation planners in other regions, especially in those cities where intention to cycle is linked to its perceived image and there is political ambition to promote a positive image of cycling and stimulate modal shift. Moreover, this study contributes to the current literature developing applications of the TPB. Future research may include further investigating social comparison as a latent construct underlying intention to cycle
