Investigating Walking and Biking Activities Among Low-Income African Americans

Abstract

Different transportation organizations have collected various data related to walk and bike trips; however, few studies have investigated various aspects of walk and bike trips among different racial groups and household income groups. The main goal of this study is to explore the number of walk trips, number of walk trips for exercise, number of bike trips, number of bike trips for exercise, and bike share program usage among different household income groups and different races. To conduct the statistical analysis, we use the latest National Household Travel Survey (NHTS) dataset, which is the largest and the most valid national transportation-related dataset in the United States. The novelties of this study are to investigate the newly walk-related and bike-related attributes in the 2017 NHTS, and focus on different household income groups and different races. The primary contribution of this study is to provide a deeper insight into bike-travel and bike-travel behavior among different household income groups and different races in the U.S., which can assist the authorities and transportation planners in prioritizing investment in bike infrastructure.

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Universities Involved

Morgan State University

Principle Investigator(s)

Eazaz Sadeghvaziri (MSU), Email: eazaz.sadeghvaziri@morgan.edu
Mansoureh Jeihani (MSU), Email: mansoureh.jeihani@morgan.edu
Ramina Javid (MSU), Email: rajah1@morgan.edu 

Funding Sources and Amounts

USDOT: $49,995, MSU: $24,350 (Match)

Start Date

Oct. 1, 2021

Expected Completion Dates

Sept. 30, 2022

Expected Research Outcomes

It is expected to find that the African-American population has the lowest average number of bike trips compared to white and Asian populations. Moreover, individuals with household incomes of more than $100,000 have the highest 30-day average bike share program participation compared to other income groups.

Expected Equity Benefits of Implementation

It is expected that the findings of this project can provide authorities and decision makers a better understanding of active transportation modes usage among minorities to better prioritize investment in walk and bike infrastructure.

Subject Areas

Equity in Transportation, Active Travel Modes among Minorities, National Household Travel Survey