By Community or Design? Age-restricted Neighbourhoods, Physical Design and Baby Boomers' Local Travel Behaviour in Suburban Boston, US
Author(s)
Zegras, P. Christopher; Lee, Jae Seung; Ben-Joseph, Eran
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This article analyses the travel behaviour, residential choices and related preferences of 55+ baby boomers in suburban Boston, USA, looking specifically at age-restricted neighbourhoods. For this highly auto-dependent group, do neighbourhood-related characteristics influence local-level recreational walk/bike and social activity trip-making? The analysis aims to discern community (for example, social network) versus physical (for example, street network) influences. Structural equation models, incorporating attitudes and residential choice, are used to control for self-selection and to account for direct and indirect effects among exogenous and endogenous variables. The analysis reveals modest neighbourhood effects. Living in age-restricted, as opposed to unrestricted, suburban neighbourhoods modestly increases the likelihood of residents being active (i.e. making at least one local recreational walk/bike trip) and the number of local social trips. Overall, the age-restricted community status has greater influence on recreational and social activity trip-making than the neighbourhood physical characteristics, although some community–neighbourhood interaction exists.
Date issued
2012-01Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Urban Studies and PlanningJournal
Urban Studies
Publisher
Sage Publications
Citation
Zegras, C., J. S. Lee, and E. Ben-Joseph. “By Community or Design? Age-Restricted Neighbourhoods, Physical Design and Baby Boomers’ Local Travel Behaviour in Suburban Boston, US.” Urban Studies 49, no. 10 (August 1, 2012): 2169–2198.
Version: Author's final manuscript
ISSN
0042-0980
1360-063X