Car allocation decisions in car-deficient households: the case of non-work tours

Abstract

This study examines the household interactions in the context of the car allocation choice decision in car-deficient households as part of an activity-scheduling process, focusing on non-work tours. A chi-square automatic interaction detector-based algorithm is applied to derive a decision tree using a large activity diary dataset recently collected in the Netherlands. The results show a satisfactory improvement in the goodness-of-fit of the decision tree model compared to the null model. Gender still plays a role. A descriptive analysis indicates that men, more often than women, get the car for non-work tours for which a car allocation decision needs to be made. Tour-level attributes also influence the household car allocation decision for non-work tours. Overall, men exert more influence on the car allocation decision for non-work tours, as indicated by the number of influential variables that relate to males. The developed models will be incorporated in a refinement of the ALBATROSS model – an existing computational process model of activity-travel choice.