Public Behavior Towards Different Means of Commutation with Reference to Dehradun
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ZENITH International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research Vol.1 Issue 8, December 2011, ISSN 2231 5780 PUBLIC BEHAVIOR TOWARDS DIFFERENT MEANS OF COMMUTATION WITH REFERENCE TO DEHRADUN TADAMARLA.ANUPAMA*; INUMULA KRISHNA MURTHY**; K.DEEPPA*** *Assistant Professor, College of Management and Economic Studies, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Bidholi Campus, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India. **Assistant Professor, College of Management and Economic Studies University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Bidholi Campus, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India. ***Lecturer, College of Management and Economic Studies, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Bidholi Campus, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India. ABSTRACT Nestled in the mountain ranges of the Himalaya, Dehradun is one of the oldest cities of India and is recently declared as the Provisional Capital of newly created Uttaranchal (Now Uttarakhand) State in the month of Nov’2000. According to the latest census report, the Dehradun district has a population of 1,282,143.The means of transport used by people of Dehradun to commute are municipal buses, private taxis/auto, two wheelers, four wheelers, and private buses. The purpose of this research is to Study the Public behavior on different means of transportation available in Dehradun for regular commutation. People use different means of transport for their daily commutation in Dehradun. We have identified few of them which are very common and conducted a survey with the residents of Dehradun to know their satisfaction level with existing transport means and factors which are influencing their choice of daily commutation. A well defined questionnaire is used for collecting data for the research. The study is carried in Dehradun during the year April 2010. This study could be useful to develop better public transport modes and systems, as efficient and reliable urban transport systems are vital for a state to achieve economic development KEYWORDS: Commutation, Public Transportation, Private Transportation, Waiting Time. ______________________________________________________________________________ INTRODUCTION Nestled in the mountain ranges of the Himalaya, Dehradun is one of the oldest cities in India and is recently declared as the Provisional Capital of newly created Uttaranchal (Now Uttarakhand) State in the month of Nov’2000. It consists of 6 tehsils, 6 community development search.org.in blocks, 17 towns and 764 inhabited villages. It also consists of 18 uninhabited villages. According to latest census, the Dehradun district has a population of 1,282,143.The means of transport used by people of Dehradun to commute are municipal buses, private taxis/auto, two wheelers, four wheelers, and private buses. Understanding of commuting mode behavior is www.zenithre crucial for enhancing the effects of transportation demand management policies and improving the utilization of mass transits. For the purpose, this research focused on analyzing the influences 372 ZENITH International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research Vol.1 Issue 8, December 2011, ISSN 2231 5780 of various factors like availability, cost, frequency, distance to travel, comfort, security etc on commuting. This study could be useful to develop better public transport modes and systems. Efficient and reliable urban transport systems are vital for the Indian cities to achieve economic development. Transport demand in most cities in Indian has increased substantially, due to increase in population, which is a result of both natural increase and migration from rural areas and smaller towns. The increasing rate of urbanization and city size has put the urban transport system under great stress. The existing public transport systems have not been able to keep pace with the rapid and substantial increases in demand. LITERATURE REVIEW Differences in people’s attitude and personality traits lead to their attributing varying importance to environmental considerations, safety, comfort, and convenience, and could be a key to improving the urban transport situation. Gärling et al. (1998) found that attitudes towards flexibility, comfort, and environmental issues all influence one’s choice of transport. Cutting- edge research now considers transport as a part of everyday life and behavior, and an integrated part of modern culture (Jensen, 1999). Beirão and Cabral (2007) conducted a qualitative study of public-transport users and car users in order to obtain a deeper understanding of travelers’ attitudes towards transport and to explore perceptions of public transport service quality. Hiscock et al. (2002) conducted in-depth interviews with a sample of car owners and non-car owners in Scotland, to investigate the psycho-social benefits people seem to derive from their cars. They found that cars were seen to provide protection from undesirable people and events, and provided autonomy because car use was seen as being more convenient, reliable and providing access to more destinations than public transport. Cars were also seen to give prestige and other socially desirable attributes such as competence, skill and masculinity. To make public transport more attractive, the authors suggested that policy makers consider how make it provide similar sorts of benefits, targeting the different needs of various population groups. Mobility in the developing world is often characterized by travel demand that far exceeds supply (Darido 2003). Traveler modal choice is generally explained by three basic factors: characteristics of the journey (e.g., length, time of day, and purpose), the socioeconomic characteristics of the traveler, and the transport system (Thamizh Arasan et al. 1996). DATA &METHODOLOGY The study was conducted in Dehradun, Uttarakhand. Random sampling was followed to select the sample of 280 customers. The respondents in the sample were interviewed and the data was collected using a well- structured interview schedule. Simple percentages were worked out to study general characteristics like age, gender, education, usage of different modes of search.org.in transportation, money spent on transportation, factors that influence to choose the mode of transportation etc. The sample respondents were asked to indicate the satisfaction levels on highly satisfied, satisfied, neutral, dissatisfied and highly dissatisfied. The types of transportation modes that are considered are company bus, own vehicles and private transportation. Target sample size was kept as 280 because all the places of Dehradun were not explored. The study is www.zenithre carried during the years April 2011. 373 ZENITH International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research Vol.1 Issue 8, December 2011, ISSN 2231 5780 In this study primary data was collected from people from different parts of Dehradun Information was gathered through a structured questionnaire. Data analysis was done with simple percentage charts, classification of data and finding the most influenced factor for choosing the mode of transportation was done through weighted averages .Chi-square test was done in the further analysis. Chi-square test was carried to find the relation between the two sets of variables i.e. parameters considered for choosing the mode of transportation, age and their satisfaction levels. Choice of transportation, profession and distance. Chi-square was calculated by finding the difference between the observed and theoretical frequency for each possible outcome, squaring them, dividing each by the theoretical frequency and taking the sum of the results. Basic Computational Equation is given by THE STUDY For the purpose of the study the entire sample of customers surveyed were categorized into different classes namely with respect to the usage of different modes of transportation for daily commutation like: College/Company Bus, Own vehicles, Private Transportation. The second section of the questionnaire contained questions regarding the socio and demographic details of respondents which are used to interpret the responses on other questions. To study the different perceptions and usage of different modes of transportation for daily commutation are done in, Dehradun during the years period April 2011. To explore the reasons behind People’s preference in choosing the mode of commutation. Analysis can be drawn by identifying the satisfaction level towards the modes of transportations. To study the impact of distance and professions in choosing the mode of transportation. TABLE I DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS OF THE RESPONDENTS Characteristics No. of Respondents Age of respondents Less than 18 years 10 search.org.in 18 – 24 years 110 24 – 30 years 102 www.zenithre 374 ZENITH International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research Vol.1 Issue 8, December 2011, ISSN 2231 5780 30 – 36 years 22 More than 18 years 36 TOTAL 280 Gender Male 206 Female 74 TOTAL 280 Profession Student 120 Employee 92 Housewife 56 Business 12 TOTAL 280 Income Less than Rs.1 Lakh 90 Rs.1 to 2 Lakhs 52 Rs.2 to 3 Lakhs 64 Rs.3 to 4 Lakhs 28 More than 4 Lakhs 46 TOTAL 280 search.org.in In the following table is a combination of variables like: respondents using a particular mode of transportation like company vehicle, own vehicle and private transport, respondents having their own vehicles, distance travelled daily, time, amount spent on daily commutation, satisfaction levels of respondents on different factors and factors that influence their decision of changing www.zenithre 375 ZENITH International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research Vol.1 Issue 8, December 2011,