- 1 - DOCUMENT AS SENT TO INRETS ON APRIL 17, 2006 Changing Travel Behavior in Environmental Strategies: A New Research Approach Matthew A. COOGAN*, Karla H. KARASH** & Thomas ADLER*** *The New England Transportation Institute 898 Clay Road, White River Junction Vermont, 05001, USA Phone/Fax 802 295 7499 – email cooganmatt@aol.com ** TranSystems Corporation, Medford, Massachusetts, USA ***Resource Systems Group, White River Junction, Vermont, USA Abstract While there is consensus that present patterns of auto dependence are inconsistent with established goals for sustainability and climate change, there is little agreement on which policies and actions could lower overall auto dependence. This paper concerns the relationship between new mobility products/services and the propensity to change travel behavior. In a survey of 501 respondents, the Theory of Planned Behavior was first applied to establish base case conditions for key variables. Respondents were exposed to seven possible improvements to transit services. A follow-up application of the theory was undertaken to look for shifts in key attitudes. New products/services may influence 1) the traveler’s personal inclination to change modal behavior, 2) her belief that a change in modal behavior would be socially acceptable, and 3) her belief that she actually could change the behavior. These three attitudinal categories were examined for four market segments for changed travel behavior. Research results suggest that new products and technologies dealing with a latent fear of being lost, abandoned or needing more information might contribute to an increased social acceptance of a lifestyle more dependent on transit and walking. Keys-words: travel behavioral change, Theory of Planned Behavior, environmental strategies Introduction It has been well documented in the professional literature that making significant changes in people’s travel behavior in the direction of a more sustainable pattern will be difficult (Garling, 2005). A recent study undertaken in the United States by the Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) addressed the issue of potential change in modal behavior in two innovative ways (TranSystems et. al., 2006). First, the study examined the factors which influence one’s choice of neighborhood in the same research project as the factors which influence the choice of mode once the neighborhood is held constant. Second, the study utilized research methods previously not applied to the issue of changed travel behavior in the United States. The project called for the use